Of All The Luck
by CharmedOneForever
Summary: Set near the beginning of season 4. Paige is still having trouble fitting in with her sisters and lately she seems to be on a constant bad luck streak. Is this simply life or is something more sinister at work?
1. A Really Crappy Day

**Of All The Luck**

**By CharmedOneForever.**

Summary: Set near the beginning of season 4. Paige is still having trouble fitting in with her sisters and lately she seems to be on a constant bad luck streak. Is this simply life or is something more sinister at work?

Rating: K+

Disclaimer: I do not nor have I ever owned Charmed or any of it's characters…. But damn, I wish I did lol!

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A/N: Hi guys, I know it's been AGES since I've written anything but I've had a lot going on… no excuse, I know! I'm not too keen on the title of this fic but unfortunately I couldn't think of anything else and I'm having some communication problems with my beta at the moment. Anyway, here it is! Please read and review, all comments greatly appreciated.

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The weather had been unusually gloomy in San Francisco for the past couple of weeks. The air was cold and crisp while the sky was a miserable grey colour. Fog hung around the deserted streets, creeping into every available nook and cranny, making the whole city seem even more dreary.

A fine rain had started to fall, the sort that drenched everything even though there didn't seem to be anything to it at all. Although only early afternoon, everywhere was starting to get dark as the late autumn clouds filled the sky, completely blocking the sun.

The normally crowded and popular park had been abandoned, it's regular visitors who, on a sunny day, could be found having picnics here or going for a stroll had retreated to the warmth of their homes. Now, the once favourite family spot looked eerie and unwelcoming.

The only people in sight were three sisters who were walking slowly together down a well worn path, peering carefully through the damp fog which clung to their skin and clothes.

One of them was walking slightly ahead of the other two, her long dark hair starting to frizz from the drizzle. She glanced back at her younger sisters and thought again to herself how strange it was not to have someone to turn to for protection, instead having to be the one who provided it. Piper had only recently become the oldest sister after a particularly brutal demon attack which had resulted in the death of her older sister, Prue. Her rock.

These three sisters were no ordinary women. They were witches. Charmed ones, destined to protect the innocent and vanquish demons.

Hearing a sigh from behind her, Piper looked back again to see her youngest sister, Paige, glancing at her watch and looking worried.

Paige was the newest addition to the family having only been discovered on the day of Prue's funeral. Their Mom, Patty, had given Paige up for adoption when she was a baby to protect her. She'd been having an affair with her Whitelighter which, up until about a year ago, had been forbidden. Worried about what would happen if The Elders found out, Patty had handed Paige over to a nun with strict instructions to give her a name that began with a 'P' and to find her a good home.

Hearing her sigh again Piper stopped and turned to her, "What is it?" Her voice sounded more impatient than she'd meant it to.

Paige looked nervous as she cast her eyes down to her watch again, "My lunch break was over ten minutes ago, Mr. Cowan's going to kill me!" Mr. Cowan was her boss at Social Services where Paige worked. He wasn't known for his good temper but he cared greatly about his job.

"Well, you know, this is your job too. I'd say saving the world from demons is slightly more important than filing paperwork."

Phoebe, their other sister, stepped forward. She used to be the youngest, at least before they knew about Paige, but had now become the newly appointed middle sister. Being a buffer between the oldest and youngest seemed to be in the job description. Ever since they'd found out about Paige, Piper had been incredibly dismissive of her. It was almost as if she hated her.

"Piper, you know Paige's job is important to her. Anyway, are you sure there's a demon here? We've been walking in circles for twenty minutes now and we haven't seen any sign of one."

Piper waved a rolled up map in Phoebe's direction, "The crystal never lies! There's a demon around here somewhere!"

"Well, is it possible you could deal with it on your own? I really have to get back!" Piper opened her mouth to argue but an energy ball suddenly flew at her, striking her in the shoulder and sending her tumbling to the ground. Phoebe rushed forwards trying desperately to peer through the thickening fog while Paige stumbled backwards away from the danger she knew was close by. Even though she'd been a witch for about a month now it still freaked her out.

All of a sudden a female demon ran out of the mist, launching herself in Paige's direction. She knocked her to the ground and pinned her there, conjuring an athame in her hand. As she raised it, ready to stab the frightened young witch she was suddenly kicked in the face and sent flying. Paige looked up to see who had saved her and saw Phoebe retrieving the fallen athame and stabbing the demon in the stomach.

Piper struggled to her feet clutching her wounded shoulder as the demon burst into flames. She turned to Paige angrily, "What the hell was that, Paige?!"

Paige looked confused, "What do you mean? What did I do?"

"If you hadn't been distracting me by complaining about your job then I would have seen the energy ball coming and that bitch wouldn't have hit me!"

"Piper, I-" Before she had a chance to finish her sentence, Piper spun on her heel and stormed off. Phoebe glanced down at Paige apologetically.

"Um… I better go and see if she's ok. I'll call you later!" She ran off after Piper without a backward glance at Paige who was still lying on the wet grass.

Paige grumbled to herself as she sat up and winced, "Hey! Don't worry about me, I'm fine!" She stood up and tested her ankle gingerly. She had fallen on it when she was knocked down but it didn't seem to be too bad. Looking at her watch again she swore under her breath. Now Mr. Cowan really was going to kill her.

Half an hour later, Paige was limping through the doors to South Bay Social Services. She gazed round the large office to see where her boss was, hoping that perhaps she could sneak in unnoticed. No such luck. Before she could manage to duck out of sight behind a desk Mr. Cowan had spotted her and was already striding in her direction. With a miserable sigh, she grit her teeth and prepared herself for the outburst she knew she was going to receive.

"Where the hell have you been?!" Mr. Cowan's face failed to mask the anger he was feeling, "You were supposed to be back here over half an hour ago!"

"Well, you see, I-"

"And where's the file I asked you to sort out before you left?" Paige's shoulders slumped. She'd completely forgotten about that.

Jamie Newton was a twelve year old boy who had been under observation after concerned neighbours had reported suspected abuse from his Father. After an investigation it had been decided that he was no longer safe at home. The report had to go through today or they might not be able to find him a placement in foster care.

"Don't tell me you haven't done it?!" Mr. Cowan's voice rose even louder and Paige cringed as her fellow workers glanced over. She wished the floor would just swallow her up whole and save her the embarrassment.

"Mr. Cowan, I'm really sorry I just-"

"You just what Paige? You broke a nail?"

Paige took a deep breath trying to stay calm. She knew there was no use in losing her temper. After all, it had been her responsibility to get that file sorted. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cowan. I'll do it now."

"Don't bother." He turned to a young blonde woman who was trying her best not to look interested in the argument taking place in front of her desk, "Nicola, are you familiar with the Newton case?" She nodded nervously, "Good. Sort that file and do it quickly." He turned back to Paige, "And as for you… Just go home. You're suspended."

"What?! But Mr. Cowan, I said I was sorry! It wasn't my fault, I got held up. I'll do the file now!"

"Paige, you've always late, you've been disappearing for ages on your lunch breaks… I don't know what's going on with you but whatever it is it's now affecting your work. You've obviously got more important things to do so just get out of here." He waved his hand at her dismissively and trudged back to his office.

Gathering up as much dignity as she could and trying desperately not to cry, Paige headed out the door and across the car park to where her green bug was parked. Opening the car door she slumped down into her seat and flung her bag down next to her causing it's contents to roll out over the floor. Cursing under her breath she leant over and retrieved the fallen items. Deciding that this day couldn't get much worse, she slid the key into the ignition and turned it only to hear the engine splutter and fail.

She fought the urge to scream and rested her head against the steering wheel. She groaned when she realised she had no money with her and that she had no way of getting a taxi. The only way she was getting home was to walk the five miles back to her loft.

She got out of her car and locked it, taking a moment to kick the wheel hard. She instantly regretted it however as she'd completely forgotten about her sore ankle. She swore loudly and received a dirty look from a woman walking past with her son.

She decided to try and look on the bright side of things. She could have been killed today but she wasn't. She could have been sacked today but again, she wasn't. It might actually be nice to get a bit of exercise, she hadn't been able to go on a run for ages now. She'd just been so busy with work and demons. The walk might actually help loosen her ankle up a bit as well.

The rain had cleared up now and a crack of sunlight had appeared through the thick clouds. She gave a small smile and set off at a casual pace. All it takes is a bit of positive thinking she thought to herself.

An hour later as she stomped up the steps to her loft, all her thoughts of positive thinking had gone from her mind and she was in an even worse mood. It was only after about a mile and a half that she'd realised she'd left her jacket in the office. Then the heavens had opened and the rain had come crashing down on her, soaking her completely. She'd thought about trying to orb but knew it was pointless. She could only orb from one side of a room to the other, she wasn't powerful enough to orb further than that yet. She had tried calling for Leo to give her a lift but had received no answer. She'd even resorted to fishing her cell phone out of her bag to ring Phoebe only to find that her battery had died.

"What the hell is going on?! What's with all my bad luck?!" She went to kick her front door but decided that after the day she'd had, it probably wasn't a good idea. It'd probably cave in or something. Sliding her key into the lock, she let herself in and wrinkled her nose. The whole place stank of damp. Rushing over to the window she realised that it hadn't been shut properly and water had leaked in.

When she discovered that her heating wasn't working and that her electric had been cut off she finally gave in and let out a sob. She sunk onto her sofa and lay down, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. Coming to the conclusion that surely nothing could go wrong just lying there she dragged a blanket over her head. She almost smiled when she thought about how weird she must look lying there like that but the day had been too bad to allow it and her expression stayed miserable.

"Paige?"

She jumped as she heard a man's voice and she quickly pulled the blanket off of her while sitting up hurriedly. As she brushed the hair from her face she saw Leo standing in front of her looking concerned.

"Seriously, Leo, If you've come to tell me that they need help with a demon then that's just tough because I'm not going anywhere!"

Leo frowned, "There's no demon, I just came to see if you were ok. Phoebe mentioned that you were knocked down earlier. I came to see if you're hurt."

Paige snorted and pulled the blanket back over her head, "Well they didn't seem to care earlier when I was flat on my back."

Leo sat on the edge of the sofa and pulled the blanket away from her, "What's wrong? You seem stressed…"

"What's wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong! I was attacked by a demon, Piper hates me, I've been suspended from work, my car wouldn't start so I had to walk five miles home in the pouring rain with no jacket and a twisted ankle, my heating isn't working, my electric's off and this whole place stinks!"

Leo sat staring blankly at her, "Oh."

Huffing in annoyance, she got up from where she was lying and went to stand by the window. Leo sat watching her for a couple of minutes then went and joined her, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"So you're having a crappy day-" Paige glared at him, "Ok, a really crappy day… Let's see… You were attacked by a demon? Yet you survived and gained experience from it. You've been suspended but at least you weren't fired. You-"

Paige held up her hand, motioning for him to be quiet, "No offence but I've already tried giving myself the 'every cloud had a silver lining' speech." There was a couple of minutes silence before she spoke again, "Anyway, explain the silver lining for Piper hating me."

"She doesn't hate you!"

"No? Well then why did she bite my head off just because I was worried about being late back to work? And then when she was attacked by the demon why did she blame me for it?"

"I'm sure she doesn't blame you, Paige…"

"She said it to my face! She said that it was my fault she got hit by the energy ball because I'd distracted her!"

Leo sighed dejectedly, "I'll speak to her."

Paige limped back over to the sofa and sunk down into it, putting her feet up onto the coffee table. She scrunched up her face, "What do I do about the heating and electric?"

"Call a maintenance guy?"

Paige laughed sarcastically, "Yeah? And pay him with what money?"

"You could always move into the manor for a while?"

She raised her eyebrows at him, "I don't think so somehow, she'd probably try and stake me in my sleep…"

"I said I'd talk to her"

"Funny how you knew which sister I was talking about."

Leo slumped his shoulders in defeat and sighed, "Do you want me to heal your ankle?" She shrugged and lifted her leg towards him. A warm glow appeared as he held his hand over her foot, it healed within a matter of seconds. He watched as she once again reached for the blanket and tugged it back over herself before closing her eyes.

Sensing that he was no longer wanted he gave her a half smile before orbing out.

Paige pulled the blanket right up to her chin and closed her eyes miserably, "This day sucks…"


	2. An Awkward Evening

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Here's chapter 2! My next update might take a while.... having some problems with the internet at the minute. In the process of switching providers but am having to deal with very arsey people on the other end who are making things as difficult as possible *sigh* I promise to get it updated again as soon as humanly possible :)

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Deep down in the underworld an old, grey haired sorcerer paced around a cavern impatiently, his staff making a sharp tapping sound each time it struck the hard floor. A demon stood a little away from him, leaning against the wall with an amused expression on his face.

The sorcerer spun round to face him, "Where the hell is she?!" He spat slightly as he spoke and the demon wiped his face with the corner of his sleeve, suddenly looking irritated.

"She's dead."

"What?!" The Sorcerer's voice rose slightly higher as his face contorted in fury, "You didn't say she'd die in the process!"

"I assumed you'd have realised that when I told you she was to go up against the Charmed ones. Don't worry, my friend, everything's happening as we discussed."

"I'm not your friend, Zoltar, far from it. And I don't remember discussing the death of one of my best demons with you… What is it you're not telling me?"

Zoltar laughed lightly, "You're so paranoid. I've told you everything. The plan is in motion, even as we speak. Her death was not in vain, she accomplished what was required. I have driven a deeper wedge between the youngest and oldest sister. The youngest… Paige, I believe her name is, has also been cursed with bad luck which will continue until the time is right. For now, we just have to wait for it all to play out." He paused and cast a sideways glance at the balding man, "Oh, and I'll be needing another one of your demons…" He walked off down a torch lit passageway ignoring the squawk of protest that sounded from behind him.

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Paige had only been asleep an hour when she woke up with a jump to the sound of someone pounding on her door. She rolled onto her side and pulled the blanket further over her head trying to ignore it but, whoever it was, was relentless. The pounding grew louder and was soon accompanied by a voice.

"Paige! Come on, open up! It's Phoebe! Paige?" More knocks followed this and then the door knob rattled as she tried to open it.

Grumbling to herself, Paige sat up and made her way over to the door, wrenching it open, "What's the big emergency??"

Phoebe looked slightly surprised at the outburst but covered it with a smile, "Hi!" She pushed past her and made her way into the apartment trying not to wrinkle her nose at the smell, "So… Leo tells me you're in a bit of trouble?"

"Nothing I can't handle." Paige went to switch on the kettle but stopped when se remembered there was no electric, "It's just a bit of bad luck that's all. It'll blow over." She looked over at Phoebe who was nodding her head unconvincingly, "What?"

"Well…" Phoebe walked slowly over to her and put her head on one side, "I was thinking… Seeing as you have no electricity and no heating as well as no job, why don't you move in with us? At least until everything's sorted."

"I do have a job!" Phoebe raised her eyebrows at her and Paige lowered her gaze to the floor, "I just don't have it at the minute… Besides, Leo's already tried to convince me and as I told him, I don't think it's a good idea."

"If it's about Piper…"

Paige interrupted her, "It's not just that. I like having my own space, I'm a very independent person. I don't like the idea of sharing a place with people."

"Not even people who have a nice warm house and a hot shower?" She smiled slyly as she watched Paige have a mental battle with herself.

"Where would I sleep?"

"We cleared out Prue's old room a couple of days ago."

Paige was silent for a couple of minutes until finally she let out a defeated sigh, "Fine. But only until everything's fixed and I've got my job back!"

Grinning, Phoebe grabbed a bag and started helping her get her things together.

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Half an hour later they were both sitting in Phoebe's car on their way to the manor. Paige chewing at her nails nervously but stopped quickly when Phoebe glanced at her.

They hadn't really spoken much since they'd left the apartment and the silence was making Paige feel uncomfortable. She shifted slightly in her seat, attracting Phoebe's attention again.

"What's up?"

"Er…" Paige paused, "Does Piper know I'm moving in?" She watched as Phoebe blushed slightly and suddenly became very interested in what the car next to them was doing, "Phoebe?"

Phoebe pulled a face, "Ok, no. She doesn't know. But she will! And she'll be fine with it!" She smiled widely at Paige and pulled to a stop at some traffic lights.

"You didn't tell her? She's going to kill me!"

"Oh, Paige, don't be ridiculous!"

They were silent for a few more minutes until Paige couldn't bear it any longer. She turned to Phoebe and spoke in a quiet voice, "Why doesn't Piper like me?"

Phoebe shook her head looking upset, "Sweetie…"

Paige held up her hand, cutting Phoebe off, "Don't give me all that crap, I know she doesn't like me. It's obvious. I just don't understand why!"

"Listen to me, Piper does like you." Paige went to interrupt again but Phoebe stopped her, "She does. She's still hurting about Prue and taking it out on everyone. Believe me, it's not just you she's being off with." The lights switched to green and the conversation was over.

Paige stared glumly out of the window. It didn't matter what Phoebe said. It was obvious that Piper had a problem with her. She just couldn't understand what it was. The only explanation she could come up with was that Piper was angry that she was alive while Prue was dead. Her eyes filled up at this thought and she blinked back the tears stubbornly. It was then that she realised they were pulling up into the driveway.

The front door of the manor was open and Piper was sitting on the front steps, apparently lost in thought. She looked up as the car pulled up and frowned slightly when she saw Paige.

Phoebe smiled reassuringly at Paige, "Wait here a minute." She jumped out of the car and jogged over to Piper.

Paige watched Piper's expression as Phoebe was talking to her and was hurt to see Piper looking annoyed. They had, what looked like, a small argument which ended with Piper getting up and going back into the house.

Phoebe ran back over to the car and opened the door with a strained smile on her face, "Come on then. Home, sweet, home!"

* * *

That evening , Paige sat on her bed staring out the window at the darkening sky. It felt strange staying in Prue's old bedroom. Although she'd never met the woman and most of her stuff had been boxed up and moved to the attic, Paige couldn't help but feel like an intruder. Sighing, she fingered the bedspread she was sitting on and wondered how strange it would feel, going to sleep in the bed of someone recently deceased.

She looked round the room curiously. Not everything had been packed away. A couple of boxes were still stacked in the corner and an old sheet had been thrown over a now empty dresser. There were a couple of jackets left hanging in the wardrobe and the two, small picture frames on the bedside cabinet still had pictures in. Paige picked up the first one which held a picture of Prue holding hands with a man. She didn't know who he was but he had dark hair and blue eyes. They looked happy together. Peering closer at it she saw a badge clipped to his belt. Must be a cop of some sort.

She replaced the photo and picked up the other one. At least she knew who it was on this one. Prue, Piper and Phoebe. All a couple of years younger but not looking much different than they did today, Well, Piper and Phoebe anyway. They looked so natural together. So happy. She'd never seen Piper smile properly at her. She wondered if in the future she could ever be as important to them as Prue was.

She was cut from her thoughts as her stomach growled loudly. They hadn't had dinner that long ago but Paige had left most of hers. One thing was for certain, she definitely had different food tastes to Piper and Phoebe. She was a fast food junkie while they liked relatively, healthy meals. Vegetable lasagne? It was ok she supposed but she'd much rather have a cheeseburger or some fries. And as for dessert! They'd had fruit salad, it hardly satisfied her sweet tooth.

The obvious awkwardness between them all hadn't helped. Piper had stayed silent throughout the meal, as had Paige. Poor Phoebe had been left trying desperately to make polite conversion for all three of them but had eventually given up and fallen quiet too. When the uncomfortable silence became too much for Paige, she'd excused herself saying that she wasn't hungry and retreated to her room. She'd only been halfway up the stairs when she'd heard Piper and Phoebe start chatting together making her feel even more like an outsider than she already did.

Her stomach growled again and she thought about sneaking downstairs and rooting through the fridge to see what was available. Piper might be angry if she saw her though. She didn't like anyone else cooking in the kitchen. Her stomach made the decision for her and she got to her feet, tiptoeing to the door. She opened it a crack and listened carefully. She could hear Phoebe talking to Cole in her bedroom. She'd met him a couple of times but he hadn't been around much recently, he'd been on the run from demonic bounty hunters. He still was actually but he tried to drop by every now and then to see Phoebe.

Soft music came from Piper's bedroom. That meant one thing. The coast was clear. It wasn't that she didn't want to run into Piper… Ok, maybe it was. She just never knew what to say to her. Her stomach grumbled again and she shushed it, stopping for a second to contemplate how weird she was for doing that.

Entering the kitchen, she headed straight for the fridge. She wondered if it would be like this every night or whether she'd eventually get used to the healthy food kick.

She spotted some bacon and put a couple under the grill. That'd do for now. A nice bacon sandwich. Simple to do and wouldn't take too long to cook.

* * *

Piper sat on the small, two seater sofa in her bedroom with the Book Of Shadows propped in her lap. Soft music sounded from her stereo and the window was open a crack letting the cool breeze waft in. She turned the page of the family heirloom and studied the picture in front of her. Some low level demon that had been vanquished a while ago now. But that wasn't what was important. Piper let her finger trail down the page. Prue had written this entry. Had it really only been such a short time ago that they were vanquishing demons together?

Tears clouded her vision and she put a hand over her mouth trying to stifle the sob that escaped her lips. Would it always be this hard? Why didn't it seem to be affecting Phoebe as much? Questions ploughed through her mind and she turned the page quickly.

The sound of orbs distracted her and she glanced up to see her husband materialising in the middle of the room. He smiled at her warmly but frowned slightly as her gaze fell back on the book. He was silent for a few seconds before taking a couple of steps towards her and removing the book from her lap. He closed it carefully and placed it on the carpet, resting his hands on her knees.

"This isn't helping, Piper."

She sniffed miserably and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, "Well, what will?"

Before he had chance to answer her the shrill beeping of the smoke alarm rang out through the house.

"What the hell?!" Piper leapt to her feet and left the room quickly, closely followed by Leo. Phoebe and Cole joined them halfway down the stairs and they all hurried towards the kitchen where black smoke was pouring through the doorway.

Paige stumbled out, one arm across her mouth and nose, coughing profusely, part of her top slightly burnt. "I only turned my back for a second, I swear!" She continued to choke as Cole and Leo pushed past her to deal with the fire.

Piper stepped towards her with a look of disbelief on her face "What… How… Paige! What the hell happened?!"

"It was an accident, I didn't do it on purpose! I turned away for a split second to get a plate and when I turned back the whole thing had gone up in flames!"

"You burnt my kitchen…" Piper seemed to be having trouble keeping control of her emotions, "My kitchen… on fire…"

Sensing danger, Phoebe quickly put an arm round Piper's shoulders and led her towards the stairs, "Tell you what sweetie, you go back upstairs and carry on doing… whatever it was you were doing. We'll sort everything out down here." Piper marched back up the stairs without a backwards glance.

Phoebe turned back to Paige who looked like she was about to cry, "Don't get upset, accidents happen."

"I just don't get it. It happened too fast. All I did was turn away, pick up the plate, turn back. There wasn't enough time for that to happen!"

"Well… Fire can spread quickly…"

Paige shook her head stubbornly, "Not that quickly." Her words fell on deaf ears though as Phoebe looked up at Leo and Cole who had just emerged from the kitchen.

"Everything ok?"

The men exchanged glances, "Well… The fire's out…"

Phoebe smiled hopefully, "That's good isn't it?"

Cole chuckled before heading back upstairs, "Just don't let Piper see it…" He paused halfway and glanced at Paige, "Probably best not to let Piper see you either…" He disappeared out of sight around the corner.

Phoebe looked over to Leo, "What did he mean by that?"

Paige pushed past them and hurried to the kitchen. She stopped in the doorway and stared in horror at the sight before her. The wallpaper by the cooker had burnt away and the wall and ceiling were completely black from smoke.

She heard Phoebe gasp and turned to face her, "Piper's going to kill me…"

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A/N: Oooh dear... Paige isn't having the best time of it lol. I know... I'm mean... Reviews are always nice though :D


	3. What Next?

A/N: Hey Guys, sorry for the delay. I got carried away with the Christmas festivities and then the internet was playing up for a while. Still, I'm here now with a brand spanking new chapter for you all. It's slightly shorter than the first two but hopefully you'll enjoy it just as much. Thanks to all who reviewed! Your comments were greatly appreciated and very inspiring!

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For the next few days Paige tried her best to keep out of Piper's way. She began eating out rather than eating with her sisters and spent less and less time in the house. She hadn't even spoken to Phoebe much, feeling far too embarrassed over the fire to face anyone.

Leo had sorted the mess in the kitchen. He'd had to strip all the wallpaper off and put new up then he'd repainted the ceiling. Paige had offered to pay for the damage but Leo had politely refused saying that it was fine and that it would give him something to do.

Nothing bad had happened for the past few days and it seemed as if Paige's bad luck streak was at an end. Just as well really, Paige wasn't sure if she could have taken much more.

She still felt convinced that the fire hadn't been her fault and that something other than plain clumsiness had caused it. She'd even had Leo check out the guilty grill in case it was faulty in some way but he'd assured her that there was nothing wrong with it. He'd also been kind enough to have a look at her car for her which was still parked down at South Bay Social Services. Apparently it had been something pretty simple to fix but when he started talking about bad starter relay wiring connections he may as well have been speaking a different language.

Now, as she stared out of the grimy window of the diner she was in, she wondered whether she was ever going to get a break . She'd slunk out of the house about an hour ago and headed into town craving a sense of normality, but now, as she pushed her fries and half eaten cheeseburger around the plate, she felt even lower than she had earlier.

She pushed another fry into her mouth and sighed dejectedly, wondering what to do. She'd tried ringing up the office and apologising to Mr. Cowan again but had been told rather bluntly not to call again and that he'd speak to her when he was ready. So much for that.

She turned sharply as she felt a hand brush against her shoulder and looked up to see Phoebe smiling tentatively down at her, "Mind if I join you?" Paige shook her head silently and watched as Phoebe walked round to the other side of the table and sat opposite her.

Neither of them spoke for a few moments until Paige couldn't stand it any longer, "I'm really sorry about the fire…"

"I know you are, but I've already told you, it's fine. Accidents happen. You need to stop beating yourself up about it." When Paige didn't answer, Phoebe leaned forward slightly and took Paige's hand in her own, "What's really bothering you?"

Paige opened her mouth to answer but felt a well of emotion bubble up, threatening to engulf her. Not trusting herself to speak, she remained silent and shook her head.

"Is it Piper?"

When Paige didn't answer again, Phoebe sighed. "I thought so… Paige, Piper's just having a really tough time adjusting right now. I know she comes across as unfriendly but she really does love you. She's just having a little trouble showing it. She… Well, both of us actually… we've had a difficult couple of weeks. Losing one sister, finding another. It's overwhelming… You just need to give her some time."

"It's hard for me too," Paige replied, trying to hold back her tears, "I've been an only child for 25 years, hell, I've been completely alone for the past 8. How do you think I felt when I found out I had sisters? A family? I was over the moon! Shocked, yes, but still so happy. And now one of them is rejecting me? How do you think that makes me feel?" Her throat closed up at the end of this and a few tears escaped and ran down her face.

Phoebe stood up and walked round the table again, sitting in the seat next to Paige, "I'm so sorry. I didn't stop to think how you were feeling." She ran her hand over Paige's head, smoothing her hair down, "I'll talk to Piper, ok? Everything's going to be fine, I promise." She squeezed Paige's shoulder reassuringly as the youngest sister wiped her eyes and nodded silently. "Much as I hate to cut this short, I have to go. I need to drop some papers down at the office. You need a lift anywhere?"

Paige sniffed and shook her head, "No, It's ok. I've got my car parked down the road."

"I'll talk to Piper as soon as I get home, ok?"

Paige nodded glumly and pushed her fries to the edge of the plate with her fork as Phoebe stood up. "I'll see you later…" Phoebe said before giving Paige a quick kiss on the head and striding out of the diner.

Letting out a long sigh, Paige picked the salt shaker up in her hands and absentmindedly tipped the contents onto her plate, watching as it mixed with the grease and formed a slushy mess. She'd been relieved when Phoebe had said she'd talk to Piper but now she wasn't so sure. Would that make things worse? She didn't want to piss Piper off even more than she already had.

She was pushed rapidly from her thoughts as the man behind the counter shouted over to her, "Hey! You gonna eat that or just sit there makin' a mess?" Paige glanced down at her plate and saw that it'd turned into a small salt mountain. She pushed it away from her in distaste and grabbed her bag, "Keep it…" she muttered before heading out the door.

The wind had picked up since she'd entered the diner making her hair whip around her head wildly. She held it off her face with one hand and half jogged back to her car, thankful that it wasn't parked too far away.

She slid the key into the ignition, smiling as she heard the engine spring to life. Even though she'd driven her car a few times now since it was returned to her it still sounded like the return of an old friend. She pulled out onto the main street and flipped the stereo on, bobbing her head along to the music.

She'd only been driving a couple of minutes when she heard a loud, unusual sound come from the back of her car. Switching the stereo off to listen, she half turned in her seat, craning her neck to see what had caused the sound. Unable to see anything, she turned back in time to see herself slowly swerving into the middle lane. She let out a shout of surprise and turned the wheel sharper than she'd meant to, sending her car into a steady spin. Panicking now, she was unable to do anything to stop herself as she heard a screech of brakes and saw a lorry coming up too fast behind her. It clipped the back corner of her car and sent her off the road and into a wall, in an ear splitting smash of metal and brick.

* * *

Phoebe pulled up on the driveway of the house and gathered her things together, mentally preparing herself for what to say. She was dreading it in a way, knowing that Piper was still going through so much and not wanting to make it any worse. She knew she had to do something though. It was obvious, even to her, that there was something going on. That Piper clearly had some sort of problem with Paige.

She got out the car and locked it, heading up the steps to the front door. She was guessing that maybe Piper was angry Paige had appeared when she did. Maybe she thought that Paige was trying to replace Prue in some way?

As she entered the manor and made her way towards the kitchen, she could hear Piper and Cole arguing. Nothing new there. She braced herself and entered the room wondering what had happened this time.

Piper was sat on one of the kitchen chairs flipping through the Book of Shadows apparently oblivious to the fact that she had a large open wound on her shoulder that Leo was in the middle of healing. Cole was stood at her side looking furious.

"It was stupid! You had no idea what level he was or even what powers he had!"

"Well, I'm looking now aren't I?"

"He's dead now! You're lucky I was here or it could have gone a lot worse!"

Piper slammed the book shut impatiently, "Well, Thank you, Cole. I don't know what I would do without you…"

Cole didn't miss the sarcasm running thickly through her voice, "You could have gotten yourself killed! Is that what you want? To join your sister?!"

A silence fell over the kitchen. Leo finished healing Piper's arm and stepped back hurriedly as if expecting Piper to explode. Instead though, Piper just shook her head and got to her feet, picking the book up in her arms. She turned to Cole and spoke quietly, "How dare you…." She walked out of the room, stepping silently past Phoebe.

There was a few seconds of quiet before Cole looked over to Phoebe, "I didn't mean… I know that was…. I'm sorry."

"What happened?"

Leo spoke up, "She provoked an upper level demon into a fight without checking up on him first. She would have been killed if Cole hadn't stepped in and attacked him with energy balls."

Phoebe sighed and nodded, "Right…" She turned to the door, "I need to speak with her alone, ok?" Without waiting for a reply she left the kitchen and headed up the stairs to the attic where she knew Piper would be.

As she entered the room she was surprised to find Piper sat on one of the old sofas, Book of Shadows lying on the floor, shoulders hunched and …. sobbing. Phoebe hurried over to her and sat down, pulling her into her arms. They sat like that for a few minutes with Phoebe gently rubbing her back and shushing her until Piper finally stopped crying. She sniffed and wiped her eyes on her sleeve, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to see me like that…"

"It's ok, sweetie. It's good. You need to let it all out."

"I guess you were all talking about me downstairs?"

Phoebe shook her head, "No, I just asked them what happened and they told me."

Piper sighed shakily and sat back, "I did look up the demon first but the book was out of date. It said he was lower level. He's obviously acquired more powers since the last Halliwell fought him."

"So, why didn't you just tell Cole that?"

"Honestly? I think I was just enjoying the argument too much. It gave me a chance to vent."

Phoebe sat back with her and linked her arm loosely through her sister's, "Y'know, you could just try talking to us once in a while."

"I know. I'm sorry." She glanced at Phoebe and gave her a small smile, "Do you think I'm crazy?"

"No," Phoebe said returning the smile, "I think you're grieving."

They sat in companionable silence for a few moments until Phoebe tentatively turned towards her again, "Actually… there was something else I wanted to talk to you about. But I don't want to upset you again."

Piper gave a small laugh, "Well, I'm already upset so you may as well go for it."

"It's about Paige…"

Piper unlinked her arm and sat forward again, not looking at Phoebe, "What about her?"

Phoebe sighed wondering how to broach the subject, "Erm…. Well, it's pretty obvious you don't like her very much but… couldn't you at least try to get along with her?"

Piper stood up and walked over to the window, folding her arms and staring out onto the street, not answering.

Phoebe followed her but stopped a few steps away, "Piper, I don't know where these issues you have with her come from but you need to get over them already! If not for her or me then what about the power of three? You know it's strongest when we all get on. When we're one."

"You don't understand."

"Well, make me understand then!" When she received no answer again, she stepped forward ad placed her hand gently on Piper's shoulder, "Talk to me…"

Piper turned towards her and opened her mouth to reply but before she could Leo appeared at the doorway, "The hospital's just rung. Paige was admitted 20 minutes ago. Some sort of car accident."

As the two sister's hurried towards him, he glanced up towards the ceiling, "Now?" He sighed irritably, "The Elders are calling me. They say it's important. I'm sorry." With an apologetic shrug he orbed out.

"Guess we're taking the car…" Piper grumbled as they made their way quickly down the attic stairs.

* * *

A/N: Right, I'm off to bed now because it's just gone 2am and I have to be up early. You know what it's like though when you get carried away with writing. Plus I wanted to get this up tonight because I know some of you have been waiting. Anyway, please review because I LOVE reading them. I promise the next chapter will be longer - I've already got part of it written! x


	4. Hospital

A/N: Hey everyone, well, I tried! And I managed to get the next chapter up in less than a week... which isn't too bad.... Plus, it's my longest chapter yet! Yay me! Wooo! So, yeah. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. As I always say, they mean so much to me and they really do inspire me to write more. Enjoy!

* * *

Sirens wailed and people bustled about in every direction making Phoebe feel dizzy. She turned slowly on the spot trying to take it all in and wondering where on earth, in all this pandemonium, her sister was? What had happened exactly? Was it serious?

An orderly barged into her from behind causing her bag to fall from her shoulder, the contents spilling everywhere. He offered her a quick apology over his shoulder as he hurried off, clearly very busy. As she bent to pick up her fallen belongings she felt a hand on her shoulder stopping her, "Here, let me…" She turned to see a middle-aged man with greying hair and a blue plaid shirt stooping down to collect her things for her.

"Thanks…"

He straightened up with a smile and handed her bag to her, "There we go, no harm done." Her tearful, worried expression drew a concerned frown from him, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah… It's just… My sister. I don't know what's happened or where she is and I'm just really worried."

"Well, here… let's go ask at reception for you…" He placed his hand on her back and gently steered her towards the main desk.

Phoebe let out a small laugh, "That would be the most obvious thing to do. You must think I'm so dumb."

He shook his head and smiled, "Not at all. You're worried. It can be confusing." They got to the reception desk and stopped, there were a couple of people in front of them.

Phoebe smiled gratefully at the man and extended her hand, "I'm Phoebe, by the way."

"Jeb," He replied shaking her hand.

"So… What are you here for? If you don't mind me asking?"

"I'm just waiting to hear back about a young woman. She was in a car accident. I came in with her."

Phoebe turned fully so that she was facing him, "Her name wasn't Paige by any chance was it?"

Jeb scratched his head, "Well, yeah… How'd you…?"

"Paige Matthews?"

He nodded slowly, "I think that's what the doctor said, yeah. Don't tell me that's your sister?" When Phoebe nodded, Jeb gave a low whistle, "Small world, huh?"

"Please… where is she? Is she ok? What happened?"

"She blew a tyre, spun out of control. I was driving a truck not far behind her. She spun right into my path and I had no time to stop. She hit the truck and swerved into a wall."

Phoebe's hands flew to her mouth in horror as Jeb tried to comfort her, "Her airbag seemed to go off straight away though so it's probably not too bad…. I called the ambulance and rode up with her to make sure she was alright. The doctor should be back soon. Let's get you some sweet tea… It'll help."

He started leading her down the corridor towards the elevator to go to the canteen but she stopped him, "No, I've got to wait for my sister…."

"Don't worry, the doctor will find us."

"No, my other sister. She's parking the car. She'll be here in a minute. She won't know where to find us." She headed back towards the main entrance with Jeb following. Spotting Piper by the doors, she half ran to her, "Piper!"

"There you are! Who's this?" She looked pointedly at Jeb who, uncomfortable under the glare, looked away.

"This is Jeb, he's the one who called the ambulance. He's hung around to make sure Paige is ok, isn't that sweet?"

Piper ignored the question, "What happened?"

Jeb stepped forward, "Her car…"

"I was asking my sister."

Jeb closed his mouth and rubbed the back of his neck, "Right…." He turned to Phoebe, "I'm gonna go sit down ok? I'll be just over there if you need anything." He walked away briskly.

Phoebe turned to Piper, "There was no need to be rude, Piper! He was just trying to help! We should be grateful he came down with Paige to make sure she was ok!"

Piper cleared her throat, "So, what happened?"

"She blew a tyre, went out of control and hit a wall."

Piper raised her eyebrows, "I see…"

Phoebe frowned, clearly annoyed, "What the hell is your problem? Why are you acting like such a bitch?"

"That's real nice, Phoebe."

"Well it's true! Why don't you just tell me? What do you have against Paige?"

"We've already had this conversation."

"We never finished this conversation. Why don't you stop being such a coward?"

"Shut up, Phoebe!"

"Just say it! You don't like Paige because you think she's replacing Prue in some way."

"That's ridiculous!"

"Really? Then what is it?"

"I don't have to stand here and listen to this…" Piper shook her head stubbornly and stormed out of the hospital doors.

Phoebe hung her head and placed a hand over her eyes wearily. She felt exhausted all of a sudden. Turning towards the waiting area, she saw Jeb walking over, "Everything ok?"

Phoebe shook her head, "No. But I can't think about that now."

"Halliwell?"

Phoebe glanced up at her name and saw a doctor standing not too far away with a clipboard in his hand and looking around questioningly.

"Here!" Phoebe hurried over to him, "I'm Phoebe Halliwell. Is my sister ok?"

"She's a very lucky woman. She escaped with very few injuries considering the severity of the crash."

Jeb visibly relaxed, "So, she's gonna be ok? I was really worried."

"And you are?"

"Jeb. Jeb Walker. I came in with Miss Matthews, I'm the one who called the ambulance."

The doctor glanced down at his clipboard, "Ah, Yes. Mr Walker. I'm sorry we've taken so long but we had to wait for the x-ray."

Phoebe chewed her lip anxiously, "X-ray?"

"Yes. Your sister has suffered from a posterior dislocation to her left shoulder, presumably from the force of her seat belt pulling her back. We managed to manipulate the bone back into the socket and according to the x-ray it's been aligned correctly. We also had some concern due to a whiplash injury she received during the accident, however it appears to only be a grade 1 injury."

"Er… Grade 1 being…. Good?"

"It's the lowest on the scale. It's not considered bad enough to require a cervical collar, however we are prescribing some pain medication as well as some anti-inflammatory drugs to prevent any swelling around the spine. She also appears to be suffering from a minor concussion due to a head injury but again, it's not too serious, she's a little confused and disorientated right now and she's having a little trouble remembering the accident but this should go away on it's own accord within 24 hours."

Phoebe nodded, having trouble taking it all in, "Can we see her?"

"Family only at this point, I'm afraid."

Jeb smiled, "I can take a hint. I'd best be off now anyway, my wife will be wondering where I've got to. I'm just glad Paige is ok."

Phoebe hugged him, "Thank you so much for staying. It really means a lot."

"No problem," Jeb nodded to the pair of them before turning and walking away.

Phoebe turned back to the doctor, "Can I see her now?"

"Follow me."

* * *

Piper sat in silence watching passers-by walking along equally lost in their own thoughts as she was in hers. Is that what Phoebe really thought? That somehow in some ridiculous twisted way she thought that Paige was replacing Prue? Did she really know her so little?

She shook her head slowly trying to make sense of things. She didn't hate Paige. She just…

Piper banged her hands on the steering wheel angrily. She shouldn't have to explain herself. Least of all to herself. She already knew how she was feeling. She shouldn't have to sit out here like an outcast.

She glanced back at the hospital entrance having a mental battle with herself. She did want to go back in and see how Paige was but at the same time she was embarrassed at storming out the way she had.

A man walked past the car wheeling an incredibly frail-looking, elderly woman in a wheelchair. The woman looked at Piper as they went past and Piper could see blood in the woman's hair and tear streaks down her face. The two women kept eye contact until the old woman was hidden from sight by the other cars.

Piper sat still for a few seconds in silence then threw the car door open. She slammed it behind her and locked it before hurrying towards the entrance. The woman's face was stuck in her mind reminding her that there was a lot more at stake here than her pride. Anything could be happening right now. Paige could be dying for all she knew while she was sat out here feeling sorry for herself.

As she went through the doors, she glanced about looking for Phoebe but couldn't see her anywhere. Guessing that she'd already been called through, Piper headed to the main desk where two young women where sat chatting about a television programme that had been on the previous evening. When neither of them seemed to acknowledge Piper standing there she rapped her knuckles on the desk impatiently.

The younger of the two turned to Piper and looked her up and down before saying anything, "Can I help you?"

"Yeah. Hi. I'm here to see someone… Er Paige Matthews? She was admitted about an hour or so ago?"

The receptionist chewed noisily on a piece of gum as she tapped a few keys on her keyboard and waited for any results. "Yeah… She's here. Are you family?"

Piper stumbled over her words as she spoke, "Am I…? Yes. Yes, I am…. Yep."

The receptionist looked unconvinced, "Do you have any I.D.?"

"What? Don't be ridiculous! I'm her… sister. Kinda. Half sister."

"I'm going to have to page the doctor…"

Piper let of a groan of frustration and promptly froze the waiting area, "Stupid, gum chewing bimbo!" Brushing a stray piece of hair from her face, she leant over the counter and glanced at the screen, "Room 405, thank you very much!" Unfreezing the room again, she smiled sweetly at the woman sat in front of her, "Thank you for your help!" She turned and walked briskly away leaving the women sat there feeling confused.

* * *

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" Phoebe smiled down at her sister who was looking a little worse for wear. She had a line of about 10 stitches going across the top of her forehead where the scalp begins, an ice pack under her neck and a pillow wedged under her left arm. There was some bruising on show where the neck of her hospital gown began, presumably from the force of the seat belt.

"Erm… Just… Tired…. And my shoulder and neck are hurting quite a bit." Paige frowned slightly and ran a hand over her eyes. She felt very tired and groggy, kind of like she was on drugs or something. The doctor had explained that this was due to her concussion and that she'd feel better after some rest.

"Jeb was waiting downstairs for you but he had to go…"

"Jeb?"

"Yeah, the man who travelled in the ambulance with you. Don't you remember?"

Paige closed her eyes, "Demons…."

Phoebe's eyes widened in shock, normally she wouldn't have minded but the doctor was still in the room, writing something on the chart at the bottom of the bed.

He glanced up and smiled, "She's been muttering about demons since she came in. I wouldn't worry though, it's just the concussion making her confused."

Phoebe nodded, "Right. The concussion."

He straightened up and slid his pen into his pocket, "Right, I'm done here. Visiting hours are for another 20 minutes but after that I'm afraid you'll have to go. I'll check on Miss Mathews again tomorrow and let you know when she can go home."

"Can't she come home tonight?"

"Miss Halliwell, I shouldn't have to remind you, your sister was involved in a car accident today. I want to keep her in for now, at least overnight to keep an eye on her. Especially with her concussion. Sometimes it can turn into something more serious. Some symptoms don't develop for twenty four hours. I don't want to take any chances."

"Sorry, you're right, you're right. Of course. Thank you, Doctor."

"No problem," He glanced at his watch, "Right, I have somewhere I need to be. I'll leave you in peace." He smiled at them and backed out of the room.

Phoebe pulled a chair up to the bed, "Paige…"

Paige opened her eyes and glanced over to her, "What?"

"You've been talking about demons?"

Paige frowned, "I don't know…. I could have been."

"Come on, Paige, you know better than that."

"Sorry… but…" Her eyes widened slightly as she remembered and she tried to turn towards slightly, momentarily forgetting about her shoulder until it exploded in pain. She cried out in surprise and discomfort as Phoebe leapt from her seat and tried to help her back into a comfortable position. Gritting her teeth in an attempt to calm herself she managed to gasp out what she'd been about to say, "Demons! They're the ones responsible! They attacked my car!"

Phoebe shushed her, "No, you blew a tyre. Jeb saw it. You're just confused, honey, it's that bang to your head. It's making you think strange things."

"No! Think about it! My job, my flat, the fire, now this! It's too much of a coincidence. You told me yourself, there's no such things as coincidences!"

"You need to calm down, ok? You're not going to do any good getting stressed out. Just get some rest and I'm sure in the morning it'll all seem much clearer."

Paige sighed in defeat and closed her eyes again, too tired to argue. A soft knock on the door made her open her eyes and instinctively turn her head, resulting in another yelp.

Phoebe glanced round at the door and was pleased but surprised to see Piper looking through the glass at them. She stood up and opened the door for her, "Piper! Come in… Come and join our little party." She gestured to the chair and Piper sat down. She perched on the edge of the bed and looked at Piper trying to determine what mood she was in.

Piper took a deep breath, "So, how are you feeling? I didn't get a chance to talk to the doctors so I wasn't sure what to expect."

Paige grimaced, "Nothing too serious, I went and popped my shoulder out it's socket that's all."

Phoebe let out a small laugh, "That's all? Paige, you could have been killed." She turned to Piper, "They're keeping her in overnight because she's got a concussion too."

"Don't forget my whiplash, and various other bumps and bruises." She looked at Piper, "I wasn't expecting to see you…"

Piper struggled desperately to think of a response and was glad when Phoebe spoke for her, "Well, why not? We're family!" As Paige went to say something else, Phoebe quickly spoke again, "Actually we should probably head off. You could do with some peace and quiet. Try to get some sleep okay?" She patted Paige's leg and stood up, ushering Piper towards the door, "I'll be back first thing in the morning." She gave Paige a smile and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind her.

The two sisters walked down the corridor in silence towards the elevator. Piper glanced at Phoebe a couple of times but Phoebe either didn't notice or pretended not to. As they stood waiting for the elevator to reach their level Piper glanced at Phoebe again, "I'm sorry about earlier."

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

Piper looked at the floor, "It's just something I need to work through on my own. It's not what you think though. I don't think she's replacing Prue."

Phoebe rubbed her arm comfortingly, "Well, you know… You really need to get through whatever these issues are and start building a relationship with Paige. Before it's too late. Y'know, she didn't even ask where you were when I first went in? It was like she wasn't surprised you weren't there."

Piper didn't say anything. She stepped back as the doors opened and let the few people out who were in there before getting in and pressing the button.

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder and saw that they were alone, "This might just be the ramblings of someone with concussion but Paige thinks her accident may be demonic…"

Piper snorted, "I doubt it somehow."

"Maybe, but you never know. Stranger things have happened."

"If they wanted to kill Paige they could do it a lot easier than making her have a car accident. Plus how would they know it would definitely kill her?"

"Well, maybe they didn't want us to know it was demonic. Or maybe they didn't want to kill her."

"Yeah, the source sends someone after her and tells them to 'rough her up a bit'. Come on, Phoebe."

The elevator doors opened and they stepped out and headed towards the exit.

"Ok, maybe it's a bit far fetched but I think we should keep it in mind."

"Whatever…" Piper pushed the main doors open and walked over to the car. As she slid behind the drivers seat she was hit with a sudden pang of worry and she was half inclined to go back and check on Paige but she brushed it off as the effects of a long day. Once they both had their seatbelts on she started the car and pulled out of the space.

She could feel Phoebe's eyes on her as she drove but refused to return the look, hoping that Phoebe would give up. Eventually though, Phoebe spoke, "You have to admit she's had a lot of bad luck lately."

"So, what? You think there's like a demonic leprechaun running around spreading bad luck? That's ridiculous, even for us."

Phoebe sighed, "Yeah, you're probably right. She's just being paranoid."

"Trust me, Phoebe. It's just the concussion talking."

* * *

Down in the underworld, Zoltar stood leaning over an urn which was emitting wafts of green smoke. He spoke to a figure standing behind him, "Well?"

"It worked, my lord. Paige was injured enough to put her in hospital. She's becoming suspicious about her luck though. She's beginning to think it's down to something demonic. However, her sisters are dubious "

"Good. The less they trust her, the further apart they grow. Then I can execute the next part of my plan. Fetch that pathetic sorcerer for me… Oh, and Jebidous…" He turned to face the demon who was still wearing the blue plaid shirt, "Change out of those ridiculous human clothes."

Jebidous bowed low, "Yes, my lord."

As he hurried away, Zoltar smiled to himself. It was all working perfectly.

* * *

A/N: Mwahahahaaaa! *ahem* I'm quite proud of that chapter so I hope you enjoyed it. Reviews are welcomed with wiiiide open arms, so feel free to leave me one lol.


	5. Tears and Confessions

A/N: Hi everyone, sorry about the wait. This chapter took a little longer to write than expected. It's here now though and dying to be read and reviewed. You wouldn't want to let it down now... would you? Enjoy!

* * *

The next morning came round all too slowly for Paige who, due to her shoulder and neck, had had a terrible nights sleep. She had lay in her 'bed of pain' watching the dark sky grow steadily lighter until it was back to it's usual dull grey colour that it had seemed to be for a while now.

A nurse had come by at around eight to give her some breakfast which consisted of watery porridge and two slices of cold toast, all of which was left untouched as Paige hadn't been able to stomach any food.

She'd been surprised to see Piper yesterday, honestly not expecting her to show up. It had cheered her up considerably though, making her think that maybe there was a chance for the two of them. If Piper couldn't think of her as family then maybe she could at least try for friends? Or even just close acquaintances? Hell, she'd settle for a smile and a hello every now and again.

It had been obvious that Phoebe and Piper had had words. The atmosphere was pretty tense between the two of them and when Paige had mentioned the fact that she hadn't been expecting to see Piper, Phoebe had all but pushed her out the door, making up some rubbish about Paige needing rest.

Digging her heels into the mattress, she attempted to sit up a bit more and make herself more comfortable. She was so bored! She'd thumbed through the small pile of magazines by her bed with disinterest. They all contained more or less the same thing… 'Lose two stone in a month!', 'Our miracle baby', 'Check out your stars!' and 'Which celebrity was caught eating half a hamburger and is now going to be labelled as 'fat' for the rest of her career?'

Sighing impatiently, Paige glanced at the clock. Half 9. Phoebe was late. Sitting up in bed, Paige pulled the chair towards her where her clothes were folded neatly. She'd had enough of this. She stood up rather shakily and managed, with some difficulty, to pull her hospital gown off over her head.

She didn't care what her doctor said, there was no way on earth she was spending another moment in this hospital. She was bored out of her mind! She managed to get most of her clothes on without too much trouble and was carefully pushing her left arm through the sleeve of her jacket when Phoebe burst through the door, nearly walking straight into her.

"I'm sorry I'm la… Paige? What are you doing?"

"Getting out of here. I can't stand it anymore!"

Phoebe watched with an amused expression as Paige turned on the spot a couple of time trying to reach her other armhole before stepping forward to help her, "Have you spoken to your doctor?"

"Erm… Not exactly…"

"Paige…"

"I was just going to!" Paige opened the door and stepped out into the busy corridor, nearly being knocked over in the process by a trolley wielding orderly. She headed down towards the main ward stopping the first nurse she saw and asking where Doctor Gardner was. After being pointed in the direction of his office, the two sister's made their way towards it in companionable silence.

Just as Paige went to knock on the door, it was flung open and Dr Gardner stepped out, apparently lost in thought. He looked surprised when he saw Paige and then his expression changed to one of sternness, "What are you doing out of bed, Miss Matthews? And dressed at that?"

"I'm sorry Doctor, but I want to go home. I'm feeling much better now, and all I want is to get out of here and get into my own bed."

"I don't know… I was hoping to talk you into spending one more night here. Just to keep an eye on you."

"Look, I don't want to spend one more minute in this place. I hate hospitals as it is and if I'd been feeling slightly more alert last night then I would have insisted I went home then. I'll sign whatever forms you need me to but I'm going home. Now."

"You'll have to sign a release. And I'd like it on record that I am not happy about this."

"Noted. Now, where's this form?"

* * *

15 minutes later after signing her release form and promising to book herself in with a physiotherapist, the two sisters were walking through the car park towards Phoebe's car.

"It's so good to be out of there!"

Phoebe smiled at Paige who was almost skipping in her relief to be free from the hospital, "Shouldn't you be wearing a sling or something?"

Paige shook her head, "No, apparently it's better not to wear one. Keeping it in the same position constantly can slow down the healing process."

"What about your neck?"

"It's more or less fine today. Just a little stiff, I've got my pills though so I'll be ok."

They got to the car and Paige sat down in the passenger seat.

Phoebe got into the driver's seat and shut the door, putting her seat belt on and sliding the key into the ignition. She started the engine and glanced over at Paige who was looking a little nervous, "What's wrong?"

"Have you checked the tyres?"

Phoebe smiled, "I did before I came out. Don't worry."

"Maybe I shouldn't be travelling with you? I could be putting you in danger. What if a demon attacks?"

Sighing, Phoebe switched the engine off and turned to face Paige, "Sweetie, it wasn't a demon attack, ok? You just blew a tyre. It happens. You just need to remember to keep an eye on the tyre pressure in future."

"I do keep an eye on my car. I'm forever checking it over, making sure everything's working. I get pretty paranoid about these sorts of things. It was a demon!"

Phoebe shook her head, "No. It wasn't. Listen to me, if a demon wanted to kill you they wouldn't mess with your tyres. They would wait until you were on your own then throw a fire ball at you. Or an energy ball. Demon's don't do car accidents."

"Maybe they weren't trying to kill me!"

"Paige, please… It was just bad luck, it could have happened to anyone." Phoebe restarted the engine and pulled out of her parking space.

"It wasn't just anyone though. It was me," When Phoebe didn't answer, Paige tried again, "C'mon Phoebe! Even you have to admit I've been having a lot of bad luck recently. Too much!"

"Everyone goes through bad luck streaks, it doesn't mean they're demonic. You've just got to have a positive attitude, it's the only way to break them."

"Not everyone is Charmed."

When Phoebe didn't answer again, Paige sighed grumpily and stared out the window.

"Cheer up. You're out of hospital at least, and when we get back we can have Leo heal you…"

Although Paige was still annoyed that no one was taking her seriously about the demons, she did cheer up a lot with that. She'd completely forgotten about Leo. At least she'd get a decent nights sleep tonight.

* * *

Piper walked back and forth in an agitated manner, resisting the urge to turn the person on the other end of the phone into a toad, "I don't care! Well, you'll just have to cancel at the other place, I have a signed contract from you saying that you'll play at the club tonight. Where am I supposed to get another band at this short notice? No! Listen, I…. What? Well, that's just tough! Look, I have a written agreement, they don't, therefore P3 is your priority tonight, unless you want me to sue you for breach of contract? No, I didn't think so. I'll see you tonight, 8 sharp."

Piper hung up the phone and threw it onto the sofa, "Idiot…"

Leo walked in from the kitchen, "Everything ok?"

"It better be. That half wit manager double booked then tried to cancel on me! Does he think I'm stupid or something? Why does he think I got him to sign a contract in the first place? He doesn't have one with the other place so his band is playing at P3 tonight, I don't care if I have to drag them there by their hair!"

Leo frowned, "What's up with you lately? You're so short tempered and snappy."

Piper raised an eyebrow sarcastically, "Hmmm, I don't know, Leo. Maybe perhaps because my sister is dead!"

Leo took her by the arm and led her though to the conservatory before gently pushing her down onto a seat and kneeling in front of her and placing a hand on her thigh, "Piper, it's been nearly a month now. You've got to try and move on. It's what Prue would have wanted. You need to start trying to build a new relationship with Paige."

Piper slapped his hand away impatiently and stood up, "What's everyone's obsession with Paige? Why are you all so intent on making us 'best friends'??" She walked away and stood staring out the window.

"What's your problem?!"

Piper spun back towards him, "My problem? Why does everyone think I have a problem? Maybe I'm not the one with the problem!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She closed her eyes and shook her head firmly, refusing to answer him.

"Piper? Talk to me damn it!"

Opening her eyes, Piper glared at him, "Paige shouldn't be here, alright! We should never have met her! It should be just me and Phoebe. She doesn't belong here."

She turned to leave the room but stopped short as she saw Phoebe and Paige stood in the doorway. Phoebe looked shocked and angry, and Paige looked…. Well, heartbroken. Without saying a word, she turned and disappeared up the stairs.

The three of them stood in silence for a moment, none of them knowing what to say. Phoebe was the first to speak. She glared at Piper with a mixture of anger and sadness, "Nice going, sis." She turned and started up the stairs after Paige.

Leo opened his mouth to say something but Piper raised her hand to stop him, "Don't." She shook her head, "Just don't." She walked through to the kitchen and slammed the door behind her.

Leo shook his head sadly, wondering how on earth they were going to sort out this mess. Deciding to start with Paige, he headed up the stairs too.

* * *

Phoebe sat on the landing outside Paige's room, gently tapping on the door, "Come on Paige… Please open the door. Maybe we got the wrong end of the stick, we only heard the last bit of the conversation."

Paige's muffled voice came through the door, "You mean the part where she said that you should never have met me and that I don't belong here? Face it Phoebe, she hates me. I'd be better off back at my apartment!"

"She doesn't hate you…. She just…" Phoebe sighed, "You know what? Forget about her Paige, if that's the way she's going to be then screw her. She's obviously too stubborn and pig headed to see you for who you really are. When she still received no answer she turned so that her back was leaning against the door, "For what it's worth, I really like you. In fact, I love you. You're bright, you're funny, you're creative. And if Piper can't see that then it's her loss."

Leo came around the corner but stopped when he saw Phoebe on the floor, "No luck?" Phoebe shook her head. He motioned for her to stand up, "Come on." He held out his hand, "If she won't come to us then we'll go to her." Phoebe held his hand and they orbed into Paige's bedroom.

Paige looked up sharply as the blue orbs faded away to reveal Phoebe and Leo, "You know, people lock doors for a reason." She was sat in the middle of her bed, hugging a pillow to her chest. Her eyes were red.

Phoebe sat on the edge of the bed and, reaching over, tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear, "And people orb in for good reason too. Are you okay?"

Paige shook her head, trying not to cry, "What do you think?"

"I think… that I'd like to give my little sister a hug… If that's alright?"

Paige nodded tearfully and Phoebe reached out to her, pulling her into her arms and rubbing her back soothingly.

Leo perched on the bed the other side, "Do you want me to heal your shoulder for you?"

Paige pulled back from Phoebe and nodded, "And my neck. It's getting stiff again." Leo put his hand out and a warm, golden glow appeared fixing Paige's injuries. He pulled his hand back and she rotated her shoulder in relief, "Oh…. That's so much better. Thanks."

Leo smiled, "No problem."

Phoebe edged a bit closer and draped her arm round Paige's shoulders, "Do you want to talk?"

* * *

Piper finished drying the plate and put it onto the stack next to the draining board. She picked up a cup and began to dry that, her mind wondering over the events of the morning. She hadn't meant for Paige to hear what she said. She slammed the cup down on the side, it wasn't her fault they all jumped to conclusions. She hadn't meant it in the way it had sounded. Why did she always seem to be the bad guy lately?

She picked up another cup and began to dry that one. She wasn't going to apologise. Why should she? She hadn't done anything wrong. They shouldn't have been eavesdropping. It was their own fault. If she'd had chance to finish what she was saying then they'd realise what she meant. She didn't hate Paige. She just… she just shouldn't be here that's all! She slammed the cup down again, this time a little too hard, making it break. Pieces flew all over the floor and she cursed loudly as she went to get the broom.

Leo walked into the room as she was sweeping and stood silently at the counter. She glanced up at him, "If you've come to make me feel bad then don't waste your breath. I already do."

"Did you mean it?"

"Not in the way it sounded, no."

"How was it supposed to sound?"

Piper sighed and got the dustpan and hand brush out of the cupboard, "I don't hate Paige, ok? I know that's what everyone seems to think." She crouched down and began to sweep up the broken cup.

"Can you blame us? Think about how you act around her. How you talk to her. And then what you said today… She's ready to move out again."

Piper looked up sharply, "What?"

"She's had enough, Piper, and I can't say I blame her. If I were in her shoes I'd have left long before now."

Piper stood up and leaned back against the sink, sighing and rubbing a hand over her face. Leo walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder, "You need to talk to her."

Piper shook her head, "I can't. She thinks I hate her."

"Don't you?"

"No, I don't! Aren't you listening?"

"Then what did you mean earlier?"

"Exactly what I said! She shouldn't be here! It's not fair!"

"Because she's here and Prue's gone?"

"No! For God's sake!" Piper threw the dustpan and brush to the ground scattering bits of broken china everywhere again, "I wish everyone would stop answering things for me! Just let me finish a God damn sentence!" She hung her head and took a deep breath, "I'm sorry. I'm just frustrated. It's just…" She looked up again, "Prue's gone, alright? We spent three measly years fighting demons and at the end of it she was killed. Three years, Leo! That's nothing! Three years as a witch and now she's gone. It's not fair for Paige to be dragged into this now. She's only twenty four! I mean, another three years and she could be dead. Why should she have to give up her life? Why should she have to give up everything like we did and risk being killed like Prue was? It's not fair."

Leo frowned, "I don't understand… if that's how you feel, why have you been treating her like crap?"

Piper shook her head, "I can't get close to her… If anything happens to her… I wouldn't be able to handle it. I wake up every day feeling like my heart's been ripped from my chest. I can't go through that again."

"You need to tell her this." Piper shook her head but Leo persisted, "Piper, she thinks you hate her! She's ready to leave!"

"Maybe it's for the best."

"How can that be for the best?! If she leaves she'll be a sitting duck! Demon's won't think twice about going after her when she's on her own. Can you really live with that on your conscience?"

"I don't know what to say to her…"

"Just tell her what you told me."

"I can't…"

Leo sighed, "Fine, then I'll tell her."

He turned to go but Piper grabbed his arm, "Don't you dare! Just stop trying to fix things all the time!"

They both went quiet. Piper struggled to think of something to say. She hadn't meant to snap at him like that. She opened her mouth to apologise but Leo beat her to it, "Fine. If that's how you feel, sort it out yourself. I'll be with the Elders." He orbed out leaving Piper feeling like crap.

"Leo! Come back! I'm sorry!" When no orbs appeared Piper hung her head miserably, "Great… Now everyone hates me."

* * *

A/N: So there you have it... You wouldn't believe how emotional I got writing this chapter, it was pretty overwhelming - I hope it reads like that too. Oh, and just so you all know, I've started another Paige story which I'll be uploading once I've finished with this one. See you soon!


	6. Making Amends

A/N: Hi everyone, thanks for all your great reviews! I thought this wouldn't be up until tomorrow but I surprised myself and finished it early! Enjoy!

* * *

The sky was dark outside and the wind had picked up, howling loudly and making the windows of the manor rattle. Piper sat on the ottoman under the large living room windows watching the trees wave their branches around wildly and a man struggle down the street towards his house.

Leo hadn't come back yet from when he had orbed out earlier and she was yet to see Phoebe or Paige emerge from upstairs. Piper shivered slightly and looked over to the fire place to see that the flames were beginning to die down again. She got up reluctantly and walked across the room. Picking up the poker she stoked the fire and sat there for a moment basking in the warmth as the flames rose once more. As she was doing so, she heard footsteps behind her and turned to see Phoebe sit down in the armchair.

Piper stood and walked over to the small two seater couch. She sat down and waited for Phoebe to say something. When she didn't, Piper cleared her throat slightly and spoke in a low voice, "So, where's Paige?"

"Sleeping."

"Is she alright?"

"Do you care?"

Piper bit her lip and tried to be patient, after all, it was her who had caused this, "Look, Phoebs… About earlier…" She watched as Phoebe took a deep breath and clasped her hands in front of her, almost steeling herself for an argument, "Phoebe, I didn't mean it the way it sounded."

"Then how did you mean it?"

Piper groaned slightly, "Do I really have to go through it all again? I've already had to explain it to Leo."

"Where is Leo?"

"He orbed out earlier. I upset him."

Phoebe raised her eyebrows and stared at her hands, "Seems to be your speciality at the moment."

"I… Look, I just…" Piper sighed and tried again, "When I said she doesn't belong here I didn't mean that I don't want her here… Well, I did sort of… But, again, not in the way you think."

"You're not making any sense."

"I know. I'm trying. I just meant that she doesn't belong here as a witch. That… she shouldn't be a witch, and I don't think it's right or fair that she should have to give everything she's ever know up to risk her life with demons."

Phoebe looked confused, "But she's a Charmed One, it's who she is. It's her destiny."

"How do we know that? Sure she's our sister but maybe it would have been better if we'd never met her. At least that way she'd be safe. She'd be able to carry on with her normal life instead of risking it with demon attacks. She knows next to nothing about magic, she's completely vulnerable right now."

"Piper, we were once where she is now. We didn't discover our powers until we were adults and we're ok."

"Prue's not. She was the strongest out of the three of us and she was killed."

Phoebe didn't say anything for a couple of minutes. She couldn't believe that all this time this had been what was wrong. She was having trouble getting her head around it. It had been too easy to just assume that Piper hated Paige. "So… you've been pushing her away because…"

"Because if I get close to her and she dies… I couldn't handle it. It's easier to push her away so that if anything does happen it'll protect me from having to go through that again. I can't bring myself to love her… or even like her. It just feels like an invitation for more pain." Piper closed her eyes trying to stop the few stubborn tears that had gathered from escaping.

Phoebe stood up and crossed the room, sitting down next to Piper on the sofa. She took Piper's hand in her own and spoke to her softly, "You have to take a chance. It's not fair on her to keep pushing her away all the time. She's done nothing wrong. We could all die at any moment. I could be killed by a demon, Leo could be killed by a Darklighter. You just have to have faith. And treasure every moment you spend together. She's a wonderful person, you need to let yourself get close to her. How would you feel if something did happen to her and you'd never even made the effort. Trust me, it would feel a hell of a lot worse. It's like the saying goes, it's better to have loved and lost than never loved at all."

Piper nodded and wiped her eyes on the back of her hand, "I know. You're right. I don't know what to say to her though. I've been so horrible."

"Just start with sorry and go from there." As Piper went to stand, Phoebe held her arm and pulled her back down, "Not yet, she's asleep. Best leave it until the morning."

Piper nodded and leaned back against the chair with her eyes closed feeling tired all of a sudden. She felt Phoebe's arm go round her shoulders and gently pull her towards her. Giving into the temptation she lay against her sister and allowed herself to be held.

* * *

Half an hour later, after saying goodnight to Phoebe, Piper was stood in her bedroom looking sadly at the empty bed. She changed into a pair of pyjamas and slipped under the duvet, shivering slightly as the wind howled relentlessly outside. Trying for what seemed to be the twentieth time that evening she called, "Leo!"

The orbs made her jump as she hadn't been expecting an answer. As they materialised into the shape of her husband, she leapt from the bed and threw her arms around him feeling as though she'd never been so glad to see him in her life, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you."

Slightly surprised by her change in attitude, Leo wrapped his arms around Piper just as tightly, "It's okay."

Piper shook her head, "No it's not. I had no right to speak to you the way I did. I'm really sorry."

"It's alright. It's forgotten," He smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her tenderly.

She smiled back at him but then slapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"What was that for?" He laughed rubbing his shoulder.

"Staying away for so long, I thought I'd really pissed you off."

"I'm sorry. The Elder's had me in a meeting for ages. New charge, new problems."

"I guess I'll have to forgive you then." She went to kiss him again but noticed him looking at her strangely, "What?"

"I've just realised how not-tired I am…" He kissed her again with a renewed passion and began to back her towards the bed."

"Leo…."

* * *

The next morning came around all too quickly for Piper and before she knew it she was downstairs in the kitchen making pancakes for everyone. Leo had left a little earlier after leaving her with a lingering kiss and promising not to be back too late.

Phoebe came through the door yawning loudly and looking at her watch.

"Morning sunshine, want some pancakes?"

Phoebe looked at her grouchily, "Don't you 'morning sunshine' me missy. Not after you kept me awake half the night. Next time you and Leo decide to play 'bump in the night' could you try and bump a bit quieter?!"

Piper blushed, "Oh no… Phoebs… I'm sorry. I didn't realise we were being that loud!"

"I'll let you off this one time… As long as I get extra pancakes this morning to wake me up. I've got a staff meeting to go to and God knows how many letters to get through." She sat down at the kitchen table and rifled through her purse making sure she had everything she needed for the day.

Piper placed a plate full of pancakes in front of Phoebe and a bottle of maple syrup, "Have you seen Paige this morning?"

Phoebe put her purse down and picked up her fork, "Not yet, but the shower was running when I was in my room so she shouldn't be long. Are you going to talk to her?"

Piper nodded and walked back behind the kitchen worktop to dish up some more food, "I owe her an explanation… and an apology. I've been so stupid." Phoebe rubbed her arm sympathetically and shoved a mouthful of pancake into her mouth.

Hearing footsteps on the stairs, both sisters looked up as Paige entered the room. She walked briskly over to the table and grabbed her jacket that was hanging over the back of one of the chairs.

Piper took a deep breath, "Morning Paige, how are you today?"

"Fine," Paige answered coldly as she put the jacket on.

"Um… I was hoping I could talk to you. About yesterday."

"I'm late."

Phoebe looked at her curiously, "Where are you off to?"

"Mr Cowan rang me this morning, he wants me to go down there. I guess I'm going to find out whether I've still got a job or not."

"Do you need a lift?"

Paige shook her head, "Thanks Phoebe, but it's ok. I'll take the bus."

Piper held up a plate of pancakes, "Do you want some breakfast?"

Barely glancing at her, Paige made her to the back door, "No."

"Paige, please…"

The back door slammed shut.

Piper banged the plate down on the side loudly making Phoebe jump, "Damn it. She won't even look at me."

"She's hurting right now. You need to give her time. Do you want me to speak to her later?"

Piper shook her head, "No, this is something I've got to do."

"Ok, sweetie…" Phoebe finished the last of her food and pushed the plate away, "I've got to go. I'll see you later."

* * *

Paige sat picking her nails nervously as her boss stood in front of her reading her the riot act. The minute she'd walked through the door she'd been beckoned straight through to his office and he was now letting her know how he wasn't going to tolerate her behaviour anymore.

"You have a half hour lunch break Paige, not an hour and a half. Your deadlines need to met, and your work needs to be more organised. These past few weeks it seems like you haven't been one hundred percent focused on your tasks. It's like you're off in your own little world."

Paige nodded, "I know I've been distracted lately Mr Cowan but I swear to you that things are going to change. You're going to see a new Paige, a better Paige. Things have just been a little hectic in my life recently."

Mr Cowan sighed and rubbed a hand over his head, "I know things have been tough at the moment, what with you finding your biological family and all but you've got to remember how important this work is. Every file you forget to process is costing a family the help they need, a child the protection he or she needs."

Paige cast her eyes downwards feeling guilty, "I'm really sorry. I promise though… I won't let it happen again. If you could just give me another chance… I'll prove myself to you. I'll be back on the ball. You can count on me."

"We'll see. You can start back on Monday but I want you to consider this an official verbal warning. You start back on Monday."

Paige stood up to shake his hand, "Thank you, sir."

"Don't let me down."

* * *

Phoebe sat in her office, spinning aimlessly round on her chair. She couldn't focus on her work. She was too worried. She hoped that Piper would have chance to talk to Paige soon because with tensions running so high between them the Power Of Three was at risk.

She stopped herself with her foot and sat still for a moment waiting for the room to stop spinning. At least Piper had admitted what her problem was now. That was the first step. Now all she had to do was to try and explain it to Paige and start trying to salvage their practically non-existent relationship.

Glancing at her computer screen she saw that it was just as blank now as it had been for the past hour. This wouldn't do. She was going to get herself fired if she didn't do something. Suddenly remembering that Paige was going in to work today, she wondered how she'd got on and if everything was ok.

Turning off the screen, she stood up and opened her phone, dialling Paige's number. As she waited for Paige to answer, she wandered out into the main office to get a cup of coffee. She was still tired from last night. Damn Piper and Leo. Although she was glad that they'd made up she just wished that they'd made up a bit quieter.

"Hello?" Paige's voice finally answered on the other end of the phone.

"Hey sweetie! How'd it go?"

"It was pretty intense to start with but he's giving me another chance. I start back on Monday."

"Oh, Paige! That's great!" Phoebe smiled happily as she poured herself a cup of coffee and added half a spoon of sugar.

"Yeah but it means no more long lunch breaks and no more taking advantage of my boss's 'good nature'. I have to be completely focussed on my work when I'm there or I'm going to end up unemployed. I was given an official warning today, I can't push my luck with him anymore."

"Well… don't worry about it. It'll be okay. We just won't call you away from work so often. Not unless it's life or death."

"What about demon-strations….?"

Phoebe smiled guessing that someone had been nearby, "We'll just worry about it when it comes to it. I'm sure we'll figure something out." She walked back to her office and shut the door behind her. She slouched back into her chair again and took a long drink. "Speaking of figuring things out… I really think you need to talk to Piper."

She heard Paige sigh heavily, "I don't want to talk to her. Not after what she said."

"She didn't mean it the way it sounded, Paige, trust me."

"Look, Phoebe, I know this is hard on you being stuck in the middle but can you please just try and see how much she hurt me? I know you've known her for longer but can't you try and see my side of things?"

Phoebe put her cup down and frowned, puzzled, "I'm not taking sides. I know she upset you but I spoke to her last night and she explained things to me. Honestly, we got the completely wrong end of the stick. She didn't mean it the way we thought."

"So how did she mean it?"

"You'll need to talk to Piper about that. I said I'd let her speak to you about it." Hearing a sharp tapping on the glass wall of her office, she looked up to see her boss, Elise, making signals to put the phone down. "Er… Listen, Paige, I've gotta go. Boss alert. I'll see you later on. But trust me, everything's going to be ok, alright?" She hung up her phone and waved at Elise who stabbed a finger towards Phoebe's computer. Phoebe nodded and held her hands up in surrender. Time to do some work.

* * *

A/N: I know that chapter was mainly speech and not a great deal happened but it's gradually building up to something big - I promise. Things should become a bit more interesting in the next few chapters. Oh, also want to say a big thanks to missypaige06 for mentioning me in her fic. Returning the favour now by mentioning her in mine, so yeah, take a look at her fic - You Don't Know What You're Missing. It's really good!

I'm going to go now anyway because I'm only just noticing that I've been awake for 8 hours (it's just past 4pm over here in England) and I haven't had anything to eat yet! My stomach sounds like it's having a conversation with itself so I'd better go feed it.

If you've enjoyed this chapter then PLEASE review, I really love reading them even if it's just a couple of words to let me know you liked it.

Until next time...


	7. Tensions Tighten

A/N: Hi guys, Sorry it's taken me a while to get this chapter up. I was suffering from a case of writers block. It's here now though so enjoy! :)

* * *

Zoltar strode into the large cavern, his very presence sending a tremor through his minions who eyed him nervously. He lifted the hood of his long dark cloak back away from his face and beckoned the nearest minion to him. "What's taking so long?" He asked in a dangerously soft voice, "Why hasn't the bond been broken completely yet?"

The minion gulped and tried not to show his fear as he answered, "My Lord, The eldest sister is ready to make amends with Paige. She's planning to attempt a reconciliation with her later this evening."

Zoltar nodded, alarmingly calm, "And what's being done about this?"

"We are unsure of how to continue, My Lord. None of us anticipated the eldest wanting to try and salvage their relationship."

Zoltar turned away and said, in a voice that was heavy with rage, "That's because you're all fools!" He spun back round and incinerated the minion with a fireball. "They are sisters before they are witches!" He killed another minion with a fireball. "They have feelings! Emotions!" He launched another fire ball, killing another lowly minion as the rest ran for cover.

"It's taking too long!" Zoltar roared at his remaining minions, "The eldest sister cannot be allowed to accept her! If she does then all my planning has been for nothing."

One of the minions stepped forward, "With all due respect my lord, we're doing everything you ask of us. Maybe the plan was doomed from the start?"

With a cry of rage Zoltar spun towards the minion and incinerated him with a fire ball, reducing him to nothing more than a pile of ash, "Does anyone have anything useful to say?"

Another minion bravely stepped forward, eyeing the pile of ash nervously, "Maybe, my lord, we're aiming too high. A car crash, a fire… they're all such big things. Maybe we need to think smaller. Simpler."

Zoltar raised his hand again making the minion flinch away from him. But instead of killing him, he clapped a hand down on his shoulder, "You may have something there, Kluxon." He smiled and nodded, "See to it." He turned on his heel and strode out of the cavern.

* * *

Paige had managed to get quite a lot done since she'd left South Bay Social Services. She'd been down to the garage to see what was happening with her car, got an estimate for it to be mended and quickly realized that even if she worked 24 hours a day for the next 2 years there was _no way_ she'd be able to get it fixed.

She'd also been up to her apartment to pack up another bag full of stuff. The smell had dissipated a bit but it was still stone cold and by the sounds of it, a family of mice had taken up residence under the floorboards.

Now, as she entered the manor, she paused and listened carefully. Hearing no sounds, she gleefully realised that she had the place to herself. Dumping her bag down by the front door, she took a running jump, vaulted over the back of the sofa and landed on the cushions. She grabbed the TV remote and settled down for a good hour of channel surfing.

* * *

Phoebe walked out of the building and breathed a sigh of relief. Another day over. She loved her job but sometimes it could really drag her down. Reading letter after letter of other peoples misery was pretty overwhelming sometimes.

She didn't know how Paige managed to do her job. With all the horrors she must come face to face with working there it was a wonder she hadn't had a nervous breakdown. She dumped her purse and her laptop into the passenger seat and walked round to the other side of the car. She guessed that when Paige managed to help a child or a family in distress it made up for all the bad things about the job.

She started her car and backed out of her parking space. She glanced at the clock and noted that Piper should be home soon. This should be an interesting evening. She hoped Piper and Paige could sort their differences out quickly. It made her nervous when she knew they were vulnerable.

* * *

As Piper opened the front door to the manor she was greeted by ear splittingly loud rock music coming from the living room. Her hands shot to her ears to try and shield them from the onslaught and she dropped her bag by the door as she made her way through to discover the source of the racket.

She stopped short at the sight before her. Paige had the TV turned onto a music channel and was bouncing around the room singing along into the remote at the top of her voice. She performed a somewhat impressive spinning jump and nearly fell over when she spotted Piper. She dropped the remote causing it to switch the television channel over onto a children's programme. As she scrambled around on the floor trying to retrieve the wayward remote, Piper stalked over to the TV and pulled the plug from the socket, abruptly stopping the high pitched, cartoon character's voice.

The sudden silence was shocking and they both stayed still a moment letting their ears adjust. Paige stumbled to her feet and looked at Piper. Neither said a word for a few minutes.

"I didn't hear you get back…" Paige said finally.

"I'm surprised you could hear anything over that."

Paige rolled her eyes and Piper clenched her fists in an attempt to stop herself losing her temper, "I'm not having a go at you, Paige. But what if a demon had attacked or something? You'd have been completely unaware of it until it was too late."

Paige sighed, "Whatever. I'll be upstairs."

Piper frowned, her patience growing thin, "Don't walk away from me. We need to talk."

"I don't have anything to say to you."

"Look, I know you're pissed off with me at the moment and you have every right to be but at least let me explain myself."

Paige folded her arms defiantly, "I'm not interested in what you've got to say. You just keep out of my way and I'll keep out of yours. I know that's how you'd prefer it." She turned and went to walk away but Piper approached her and grabbed her by the arm, turning her roughly to face her.

"Don't speak to me like that! I'm trying to apologise and you're throwing it back in my face! I may not have been the nicest person around here lately but it's not for the reasons you think!"

The front door suddenly opened and Phoebe half ran in. She skidded to a stop when she saw them both stood there and eyed them suspiciously, "I heard raised voices. What's going on?"

Paige shook her head, "Nothing's going on. I'm going out."

Piper grabbed at her again, "Paige! You can't walk away from this! We need to talk!"

Paige shrugged her off, "Don't touch me." She turned and headed towards the door.

Piper gestured to Phoebe to do something but before she could a demon shimmered in behind Paige. He was a large dark skinned demon, with muscles bulging through his leather tunic. Several small horns protruded from his head and there was a small red brand mark on his left temple.

"Paige! Look out!" Phoebe called in warning.

Paige instinctively orbed on the spot, managing to avoid the demon's clawed hand which lashed out towards her.

He pulled an athame from his belt and swiped at Phoebe who managed to dodge it just in time.

"Hey!" Piper shouted angrily and flung out her arms in an attempt to blow it up. Nothing happened. "Oh crap…"

Paige reappeared and gasped, still not quite used to orbing. Seeing the demon advancing on Piper, she quickly grabbed a large decorative vase that was stood on the wooden stand in the corner. She ran at him and smashed it down on top of his head, only vaguely aware of Piper shouting at her to stop. The demon dropped to the floor and Phoebe snatched the athame out of his hand, pressing it to his throat.

"My Master will kill you, witch!"

"Your master? So you were sent?"

When the demon didn't answer, Piper nudged him with her foot, "Look, you've just basically told us you're not working alone so why don't you tell us who you're working for so we can kill him."

The demon laughed, "You can't kill him. He's too powerful for you! Zoltar will destroy you all!"

Phoebe plunged the athame into his neck and the demon exploded, "Idiot."

Piper stepped forward and knelt down next to the remnants of the vase Paige had smashed. Phoebe put a hand on her shoulder, "Maybe we can get it mended?"

Paige felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, "What's wrong?"

"The vase…" Piper said before shaking her head.

Phoebe sighed, "It belonged to Mom."

Paige struggled for something to say, "I'm sorry…"

"Forget it," Piper said as she stood up and tucked a piece of stray hair behind her ear. She continued to stare at the broken mess on the floor. Phoebe put an arm round her shoulders.

"How was I to know? It's a pretty stupid place to keep it!"

Phoebe walked towards Paige and put her hand out to try and soothe her, "Calm down, Paige… It's okay. We'll get it fixed."

Piper looked at Paige, "Stupid? It was on a table in the corner. Out of the way. Where do you suggest we keep things so that you won't smash them?"

Paige shook her head and turned towards the door, "I'm going out."

"That's it! Run away! Just like you always do!"

Paige could hear Phoebe trying to keep control of the situation, "Piper! Calm down, it's alright!"

As Paige grabbed her jacket she heard Phoebe call out to her, "Paige! We need to find out who Zoltar is. We need you! The Power Of Three needs you!"

Paige spun round angrily, "That's all I am to the two of you, aren't I? Just a tool. Just a piece needed for the Power Of Three to work!" She grabbed her purse and left the house, slamming the front door behind her.

Phoebe let out a breath slowly. She was hurt that Paige could think that. She thought they'd bonded quite well these past couple of weeks. Hearing a sniffing noise coming from behind her, she turned to see that Piper was knelt back by the broken remnants of the vase. "It'll be okay Piper. We'll get all the pieces picked up and maybe Leo can glue it or something?"

"It won't be the same."

"I know. But it was an accident. She didn't do it on purpose."

Phoebe went to fetch the dustpan and brush, leaving Piper alone for a minute with her thoughts. So much for making up with Paige.

* * *

P3 was in full swing as Paige made her way slowly down the steps, the music was so loud she could feel it pulsing through her. She glanced over at the stage to see who was playing but didn't recognise the band, they seemed popular though as the dance floor was completely crowded.

She made her way over to the bar and managed to find herself an empty barstool. She sat there for a few minutes with her elbows resting on the counter contemplating what to drink. She glanced back at the stage as the music stopped and the lead singer thanked the crowd before announcing that they were going for a short break. The music changed to a much quieter song on the speakers as the band trooped off stage. The sudden change in volume hurt Paige's ears and made them tingle for a moment.

"Great band, huh?"

She turned to see who was speaking to her and saw that it was a man standing a short way away at the bar.

"Yeah… They're…. pretty good."

He walked a few steps closer and leaned casually against the bar, studying her face, "You didn't come here for the music."

She felt herself blush, "Is it that obvious?" He shrugged and waited for her to continue, "I just got into a silly fight with my sisters. It's nothing really."

He nodded his head thoughtfully, "It can't be nothing if it's upset you this much."

"Who said I was upset?"

"I can tell. Besides which, if it really hadn't of upset you then you wouldn't have bothered to mention it."

Paige wasn't sure how to respond to that, instead she turned and managed to get the attention of one of the bar staff. "I'll have a glass of sparkling water please."

"I'll get that," The man smiled at her and handed some change to the barmaid. "Maybe I was wrong, you're not resorting to alcohol yet."

"I don't drink."

"Fair enough…" He took the water from the barmaid and handed it to her. "I'm Michael by the way," He said, extending his hand.

Paige returned the smile and shook his hand lightly, "Paige." She sipped at the water and studied him over the top of her glass. He wasn't bad looking. He had curly black hair that was slightly too long for him and piercing green eyes that seemed to be able to see right down to her soul. He dressed pretty casually, he wore a pair of dark jeans and a black jacket over the top of a fitted grey tee.

"Are you here alone?"

Paige raised an eyebrow, "No, I'm here with my invisible friend. Have you met him?"

He grinned, "I meant, are you meeting somebody here?"

She leaned on the bar and eyed him playfully, "Why do you want to know?"

He had an easy smile on face as he answered her, "Well, I was just wondering. If you are here to meet somebody… maybe I could be the somebody you're here to meet?"

Paige feigned a shocked look, "Michael! Are you flirting with me?"

He pretended to think about it and then nodded enthusiastically, "Yep."

They both laughed.

Paige took another sip of her water, "So is this what you do most nights? Come to P3 to look for vulnerable young women on their own so you can try your luck?"

"Only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. I'm busy the other nights."

"Doing what?"

"Browsing for vulnerable young women at other bars," He replied with a grin. She slapped his shoulder playfully. He glanced at his watch.

"Do you have somewhere to be?"

"No, I was just wondering how long I can pull off this funny guy act before you get bored and move on."

Paige smiled, "I don't have anywhere I need to be."

He returned the smile warmly, "In that case I'll get you another water."

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter, sorry again for taking so long to update. Just in case any of you are interested, I wrote a couple of oneshots to try and clear my writers block. I'd be very grateful if you could find the time to check them out and maybe tell me what you think. Reviews are always welcome :)


	8. Under Attack

All was quiet as Paige eased open the front door of the manor and tiptoed inside. She shut the door behind her carefully and hung her bag and jacket up on the coat peg silently. She slunk softly towards the stairs trying to make as little noise as possible and nearly had a heart attack when the living room light switched on. She orbed on the spot and when she returned she was surprised to see Phoebe stood there with her hands on her hips.

"What?" She asked innocently.

"Don't you 'what' me missy! You storm out of here in a temper and disappear for hours without letting us know where you are! It's nearly two in the morning, where the hell have you been?"

"Out," Paige answered bluntly as she turned towards the stairs again. She flinched as she felt Phoebe grab her by the arm and spin her back round to face her.

"Don't you dare walk away from me! I've been so worried!"

"Why? In case the Power Of Three was put at risk. Face it, Phoebe. That's all I am to the two of you!" She turned away from her again and flounced up the stairs. She stopped halfway though as she heard a noise and glanced back down towards Phoebe. She was shocked to see that she'd slumped onto the two seater sofa with her head in her hands and begun to cry.

"Phoebe?" Paige half ran back down the stairs, feeling a sudden crushing wave of concern and worry that she hadn't felt towards someone in a long time. She sat down next to Phoebe and put a hand on her shoulder tenderly, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. Please don't cry."

Phoebe shrugged her hand away without answering and continued to sob. Paige tried again but with the same result. She tried for a third time and Phoebe gave in and leant against her, letting Paige hold her gently as she wept.

Paige swallowed a lump in her throat, willing herself not to start crying as well. That wouldn't help at all and this was all her fault. Well… not entirely her fault. Piper had started it. But it wasn't Piper who had made Phoebe cry. She tightened her grip slightly on her sister and tried to suppress the immense swell of guilt that she felt.

"I'm sorry," She mumbled into Phoebe's hair, "I'm so, so sorry."

Phoebe shook her head and sat up a little straighter, wiping her eyes on the back of hand, "It's alright. It's been brewing for awhile." She glanced at Paige and almost smiled at worried she looked. She patted her leg, "It's okay. Don't worry about it."

"How can I not? I feel like a bitch. I can't believe I made you cry. I'm so sorry."

Phoebe shook her head, "It wasn't just you. It's just everything that's going on between you and Piper. I guess it was dragging me down more than I realised."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Paige rubbed a hand soothingly up and down Phoebe's back, feeling terrible that she'd caused her so much misery.

Phoebe glanced at her and gave her a half smile, "You both mean so much to me. I just wish you could get along. I wish you could see how amazing you both are. You're so funny and creative. You're really friendly and outgoing, and a little mad but that's what I like about you. You're not afraid of anything. And Piper… I know she hasn't been like it recently but that's just because she's going through a hard time at the minute. But when you get to know her… she's so loving and generous. She's a little shy but she'd do anything for anyone."

Paige sighed, "I wish I knew her like that. I want her to like me. It's the one thing I've wanted so much since I first met the two of you. Just to be accepted."

Phoebe sniffed, "You need to sort things out with her. Please. If not for you or for her then for me. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take. I know she bit your head off earlier but she didn't mean it. She was just upset about the vase."

Paige hung her head slightly, "I'm really sorry about that. I had no idea."

"It's okay," Phoebe said, brushing a stray piece of hair from Paige's face, "You weren't to know. Leo will fix it." She smiled and nudged Paige slightly with her shoulder, changing the subject, "So where were you tonight?"

"Just at P3," Paige couldn't stop a smile breaking out on her face. She saw Phoebe looking at her questioningly and knew she was busted, "I met a guy."

"Oooh!" Phoebe linked her arm through Paige's, "Tell me everything."

Paige nodded and blushed slightly, "His name's Michael. He's cute. And smart. And funny."

Phoebe laughed slightly, "Sounds perfect. Are you going to see him again?"

"I hope so. I gave him my number and he promised to call."

They sat in silence again for a moment.

"Did you find anything out about the demon?"

Phoebe shook her head, "I was going to look in the Book but Piper said she'd do it later."

"It could be the one responsible for all that bad luck I had recently…"

"Paige, sweetie, I thought we discussed this? It wasn't a demon that did all that. It was just simple bad luck."

"You don't know that. Surely stranger things have happened?"

"Well…"

"Why is it so hard to believe?"

"It's just…"

"There could be a bad luck demon out there. We don't know that there isn't…"

Phoebe put her hand to Paige's mouth, "Shush!" She grinned and moved her hand away, "Okay, look. Yes, stranger things have happened _but_ if a demon wanted to hurt you they'd use a more direct approach. And I've never seen anything about a 'bad luck demon' in the Book before. You just have to accept the fact that it was just a bad couple of weeks."

"_Really_ bad," Paige said but quietened down when Phoebe glared at her, "Okay, okay. I'll drop it for now."

"Good. Because it's late and we should be in bed. At least it's the weekend now." They both stood and headed up the stairs, "Will you at least TRY and make an effort with Piper tomorrow?"

"It's not me, it's her!" Phoebe sighed and Paige relented a little, "If she does then I will."

Phoebe nodded knowing that was probably the best answer she was going to get. The reached Phoebe's bedroom door and said goodnight to each other before going their separate ways.

* * *

Michael grinned to himself as he thought about what a good night he'd had. Paige was such a great girl. The funny thing was that she didn't even seem to realise it.

He lay back on his bed, still fully clothed and stared at the ceiling wondering if she'd go out with him again soon. She'd given him her phone number which was obviously a good sign. He pulled the small scrap of paper from his pocket and studied it, there was still a trace of Paige's perfume on it. He pressed the paper to his nose and inhaled the delicate scent.

Michael smiled and shoved the paper back into his pocket. He hadn't felt this way about someone in a long time. Sitting up, he studied his reflection in the mirror. He couldn't believe that someone as amazing as her had been interested in him. It was almost magical. He stood and stretched. Time to get some sleep.

* * *

Piper and Leo were stood in the kitchen the next morning, drinking coffee, when Phoebe walked in rubbing her eyes groggily.

"Morning, sunshine," Piper said sarcastically, "What's up with you?"

Phoebe yawned and slumped onto one of the kitchen chairs, "I was up late waiting for Paige to get back."

"Why? Where was she?" Leo asked, taking a sip of coffee and eyeing her questioningly.

Phoebe turned to Piper, "You didn't tell him?"

"What's to tell? She broke Mom's vase and then stormed out of here like she always does."

Leo sighed, sensing an argument, and stared silently down into his cup.

Phoebe closed her eyes, "She didn't mean to break the vase. It was an accident. She didn't know it was Mom's. Besides, she was trying to save your life!"

Piper turned and placed her cup in the sink, "It didn't need saving! Don't be so melodramatic!"

As Phoebe opened her mouth to argue some more, Leo whistled loudly, "Will you two pack it in! This isn't helping matters." He turned to face Piper, "I thought you were going to talk to Paige?"

"I was! But she's being so difficult!"

"Can you blame her?" Phoebe asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Why are you always so quick to take her side?"

"Why are you always so quick to judge her?"

"Phoebe, I really…"

"Enough!" Leo snapped. They both quietened down and looked at him in surprise. He rarely raised his voice. "You're both acting like teenagers! Piper, you said you didn't have a problem with Paige and that you were only pushing her away because you were scared of losing her. If you keep treating her like this then you're going to end up losing her quicker than you think. You're the oldest sister now. You need to start acting like it. You need to apologise to Paige."

Piper looked like she was going to argue but he glared at her and she shut her mouth. "I mean it! It's like you're deliberately trying to find faults with her all the time. You're not being fair."

"I tried to apologise to her yesterday and she threw it back in my face!"

"That's because you hurt her," explained Phoebe, "Not to mention the fact she's got the Halliwell stubbornness." When Piper didn't answer her she decided to change the subject, "Did you find out anything in the book about the demon?"

Leo looked up sharply, "What demon?"

"We were attacked yesterday by a demon of some sort. We killed it but it mentioned something about it's 'master' destroying us. I think it was called Zoltar or something."

Leo frowned, "Doesn't ring a bell…"

Phoebe looked at Piper expectantly, "So, what did the Book say?"

"I haven't had chance to look yet." As Phoebe opened her mouth to say something, Piper cut her off, "Do I have to remind you that I was very upset yesterday? It slipped my mind. I'll do it in a minute."

Leo looked concerned, "I'll go and find out if the Elders know anything." He gave Piper a quick kiss on the lips and orbed out.

Piper scratched her arm thoughtfully, "I'm going to get something to eat." She saw Phoebe stare at her pointedly and sighed heavily, "Right after I check the Book."

Hearing the telephone start to ring, Phoebe rose from her seat, "I'll get that." She was barely even on her feet though when the ringing stopped. Sharing a curious glance with her sister, they both stepped out into the dining room to see Paige smiling and talking to someone on the phone.

She glanced up and saw them both. Muttering a quick goodbye, she replaced the handset and eyed the pair of them, "What?"

"Were you eavesdropping?" Piper asked in disgust.

"What?" Paige cried in disbelief, "No, I wasn't! I can't believe you'd think I'd do something like that!"

"Well, you answered the phone pretty quickly!"

Phoebe pressed her fingers into her temples feeling a headache coming on, "Guys… please don't start…"

"I'd just got to the bottom of the stairs when it rang. Not that I should have to explain myself to you!"

Piper took a deep breath, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Paige narrowed her eyes suspiciously, "Are you apologising?"

"What does it sound like? I am capable of an apology, you know!"

"Could have fooled me…" Paige muttered.

Piper looked angry, "That's it! We need to talk!"

"Guys… Please…" Phoebe pleaded.

"Not now," Paige stated as she started up the stairs, "I have a lunch date to get ready for and I don't need to be dealing with your drama right now."

"My drama?!" Piper demanded incredulously, following Paige up the stairs with Phoebe close behind her.

Paige stopped halfway up and rounded on her, "Yes. Your drama. I don't know what the hell your problem is and frankly I don't care. All that matters to me at this point in time is getting ready to go out with the first nice guy I've met in a long time. You clearly have issues with me. So why don't you just deal with it? Then maybe we can talk."

Piper glared at her, "What the hell do you think I'm trying to do here? I've dealt with my _issues_ but whenever I try to speak to you, you go off on one!"

"So this is all my fault?"

Phoebe had had enough, "Pack it in! The pair of you! I'm sick of you fighting all the time! We're supposed to be sisters for crying out loud! Why don't you start acting like it!"

Before either of them could answer, an energy ball hit Phoebe squarely in the back sending her crashing into the wall. She dropped to the floor and tumbled down the stairs to the bottom where she lay unmoving.

Piper spun to see where the energy ball had come from and saw five demons standing in the hall looking up at them. Three of them launched energy balls towards them.

"Incoming!" She yelled as she lunged at Paige, knocking them both down onto the steps. She held Paige's head down and pressed herself as low to the floor as possible. Even then she still felt the heat of the energy balls on her face as they flew overhead, narrowly missing them.

She jumped to her feet and flung her hands out, killing one of the demons. She was aware of Paige scrambling to her feet just behind her.

"Grandfather clock!" Paige yelled, hurling it towards one of the demons and vanquishing it, hoping that she hadn't just destroyed another precious family heirloom.

"Paige! Look out!" Piper shouted as she ducked away from another energy ball.

Paige orbed automatically but not in time. The energy ball hit her in the stomach, sending her slamming backwards into the wall. She grabbed the banister as she fell, stopping herself from plummeting down the steps as Phoebe had. She felt Piper's arm go around her waist as she helped her to her feet.

"Are you okay?"

Paige could only nod silently. In truth her insides were screaming in protest to the assault she'd just endured but there was no time to stand around feeling sorry for herself.

She gasped as she saw another energy ball heading straight towards them and grabbed Piper around the middle without thinking. She orbed on the spot, saving them both from any nasty injuries - or in her case _any more_ nasty injuries.

As they reappeared, Piper looked at her in awe, "You've never orbed anyone else before."

"First time for everything," Paige said in reply. She ducked again to avoid another energy ball and winced as she straightened up, clutching her stomach from where the other one had hit her. The material of her top was feeling slightly sticky now and Paige glanced down to see a dark red stain slowly appearing.

She looked over at Piper, "Let's get off these stairs before we're both killed."

Piper nodded, blowing up another demon then following Paige cautiously down the steps. The remaining two demons both shimmered out as they approached. "Wimps."

Piper knelt down next to Phoebe and placed two fingers to her neck, "She's alive… I think she's just knocked out." She saw a bloodied stain on the back of Phoebe's top and cringed, "She needs healing though." She looked over to Paige who was stood leaning against the wall and her head tilted back. Her eyes were closed and both arms were wrapped around her stomach. "Paige?"

Paige opened her eyes and looked at Piper, "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"Are you alright?"

Paige moved her arms from her stomach revealing a large, dark red stain, "I'm kind of in need of healing too."

As Piper opened her mouth to call for Leo, the two demons who had shimmered out appeared behind her. Before Paige could even call out a warning, one of them stepped forward and hit Piper round the head with a type of cosh. She dropped like a stone.

Paige started forward but was pushed telekinetically back by one of them. She hit the wall and slumped down into a sitting position, unable to do anything but watch as Piper was picked up roughly and flung over the demon's shoulder. The other demon did the same with Phoebe and they both shimmered out.

Paige tried to stand but the crippling pain in her stomach prevented her from doing so. She was just able to shout out her brother-in-law's name before everything went black.

* * *

A/N: Dun dun duhhh! Lol. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did then please leave me a review. I love reading them :)


	9. Staying Strong

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys, they mean a lot :) Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

Piper paced restlessly around the tiny cave that she and Phoebe had been imprisoned in. It was more like a prison cell really, the only way in or out being through a thick wooden door set into the cave wall. The whole place was damp, dirty and cold. The only source of light came from the small barred window set into the door which had remained locked ever since they'd arrived.

Two guards were stationed outside and every now and again one of them would peer through the window on the door to make sure they weren't up to anything. Not that they could really get up to anything in here, Piper thought. She'd already tried blasting the door several times but it was protected by some kind of force field.

She glanced down at Phoebe who was still lying unconscious across the floor where one of the guards had dumped her. Piper had rolled her onto her side and checked her for injuries. It looked like her leg was broken and there was a bad burn on her back where the energy ball had hit her. It had been bleeding a bit but Piper had ripped the sleeve off of her shirt and used it to clean the wound. It looked slightly better now. She also had a small graze on her forehead but nothing too serious.

Piper had tried to wake her up but had eventually given up and draped her jacket over her to keep her warm. All she could really do was just check on her every ten minutes or so and hope she'd be ok.

She rubbed her hand over the back of her pounding head, feeling a lump starting to appear where she'd been hit earlier. She wondered how long they'd been here now. She didn't even know how long she'd been knocked out for which didn't help. Her watch had been smashed during the struggle and Phoebe wasn't wearing one. It felt like hours but then time always dragged by when there was nothing to do. Piper took up her restless pacing again wondering where Paige was. Was she okay? Had the demons taken her too? If they had then where was she? Unless… No. She couldn't let herself think like that..

The cell door suddenly swung open to reveal a demon that she hadn't seen before. It didn't matter though. The way the guards bowed their heads to him made it obvious he was the one in charge of this operation.

Without giving him a chance to speak, Piper flung herself at him ready to fight him with every ounce of strength she had. Before she'd even taken two steps though he pointed his hand at her. A blinding pain shot through her head making her scream. She clutched her head in her hands feeling like it was about to split open. Just when she felt she was about to pass out from the pain it disappeared and she found herself on her knees gasping for breath.

She looked up at the demon who was calmly watching her, "Zoltar I take it?" She took his smile for a yes and asked, "What do you want with us?"

He didn't answer her. He simply stood there and looked at her with an amused smile on his face.

Although wary that he might send another painful blast through her head, Piper snorted, "Let me guess… You're planning on handing us over to the Source to gain 'respect' so that you can 'move up' in the underworld? Let me tell you something, you wouldn't be the first demon to try that move. In fact you're one in a long list. And guess where they all ended up? Vanquished. In the waste land."

"It's a good job that that's not what I'm planning then."

Piper eyed him suspiciously, "What do you want then?"

"Why is it that witches always seem to think that us demons are willing to confess our plans to them? They wouldn't be plans if I told you what I was going to do."

"Where's Paige?"

"Don't worry. She's alive. She was left behind. I didn't need her. Yet."

"She's going to find us."

"I'm counting on it. When the time is right you're going to say a spell to help her find you. I'll be waiting for her."

"Go to hell, I won't do anything to put her in danger."

He raised his hand slightly and his smile widened as she flinched. His smile changed to a cruel one as he glanced at Phoebe, "Well, I can think of a few methods of persuasion if you like." He snapped his gaze back to meet Pipers, "But I'm sure you'd rather not have any unpleasantness." He walked out of the door, pausing only once to add, "Don't keep me waiting too long though, Piper. I'm not known for my patience." With that he walked away. One of the guards slammed the cell door shut again and the sound of a bolt locking could be heard.

Piper walked across to the other side of the cell, which only took about four steps, and leaned back against the wall. She could feel dampness seeping into the back of her shirt but didn't care. Sliding down, she sank down to the ground and pulled her knees up to her chest. She glanced over at Phoebe and shivered, she didn't want to know what Zoltar's methods of persuasion would be but she could guess it wouldn't be nice for her sister.

She sighed miserably, "Paige, where are you?"

* * *

Paige closed her eyes and took a deep breath trying to stay calm. They'd only been gone a couple of hours. It wasn't that long. There was still plenty of time.

A lot could happen in a couple of hours though, said a voice in the back of her head. The demons could be doing God knows what to them. They might already be dead. She shook her head trying to rid herself of these thoughts and concentrate on the task in hand.

After Leo had healed her she'd sent him to the Elders to see if they had any information on the demon responsible or where her sisters were. He still wasn't back.

As she flipped through the Book of Shadows for what felt like the twentieth time she heard a sticky sort of noise and craned her neck to examine the Book a little closer. Realising that a couple of pages were stuck together with some sort of unidentifiable potion ingredient, she carefully eased them apart and looked down at the page in front of her. Zoltar.

She frowned. Why did that name sound familiar? Of course! That was the name the demon had mentioned yesterday! She rubbed the back of her neck trying to ease the tension she could feel building up. Wow. Yesterday felt like a lifetime ago.

Blue orbs lit the room briefly as Leo appeared. She looked up expectantly but her hopes were dashed as he shook his head, "They don't know who took them. Or where they are. They said to have faith though. You'll find them."

Paige raised her eyebrows, "It took them all that time to tell you that?"

"Time moves differently up there," He said apologetically. "Plus I was checking through a few old scrolls and books to see if I could find anything. There wasn't much though."

"Great," She muttered sarcastically as she looked back down at the page on Zoltar.

"Have you found something?"

"Quite possibly… Zoltar, an upper level demon with the power of energy balls and telekinesis. Seeking to earn favour with the Source."

"Zoltar?"

"Yeah. A demon attacked yesterday and mentioned his name. It'd be too much of a coincidence for him not to be involved."

Leo nodded, "Right. I remember now. Phoebe mentioned it this morning. What else does it say?"

"Erm…" Paige looked back down at the page, "No potion or spell will kill him. The only way to defeat him is by stabbing him with a blade blessed with blood. Great caution is needed however as he is an accomplished fighter." She rolled her eyes, "Great. No pressure then."

"You can do this."

"I don't even know how to find them!"

"You will. You just need to trust in your abilities."

She didn't answer him. Glancing back down at the page again she let out a shout of triumph making Leo jump.

"What is it?"

She read aloud again, "Also has the rare ability to curse insecure witches with bad luck." She shook her head, "Bastard… I knew it!" She paused and looked up at Leo, "I'm not insecure."

"You have been lately. What with everything that's been going on with you and Piper. That's what Phoebe was trying to get across to you both. When the Power of Three is isn't at it's strongest it can make you vulnerable. Demon's will take advantage of this."

Paige felt uncomfortable and changed the subject, "How do I bless the blade?"

"You need to make a potion with your blood in it. There should be a recipe in the back of the book." He crossed the room and opened the wooden chest which held all of the ceremony equipment. He took out a decorative athame and handed it to her. "Here, this should be fine."

As Paige took it from him she heard the doorbell chime downstairs. She stood and walked over to the window, peering down to see who it was. "It's Michael."

"Who's Michael?"

"He _was_ my date. Now he's the guy I stood up."

She started towards the door but Leo stopped her, "This is slightly more important than some guy, Paige."

"He's not just some guy, he's one of the nicest guys I've met and…" She glanced at her watch, "I have kind of stood him up. I was meant to meet him half an hour ago." Leo stared at her in disbelief. "I'm not going out! I'm just going to apologise and arrange to meet up with him another time." She pushed past Leo and hurried down the stairs to the front door.

By the time she got there and opened it, he was already halfway back down the steps, "Michael!"

He turned and gave her an unsure smile, "Paige. Hi. Erm… I was just coming round to see if you were alright. We were meant to meet up for lunch."

"I know. I'm so sorry. There's been a bit of a… family emergency."

He looked concerned and slowly made his way back up the steps, "Is everything okay?"

Paige nodded, "It should be. I just… I just need some time to sort it out. Hopefully it won't take too long."

"Do you need me to help you with anything?"

Paige smiled, "That's sweet but it's okay. My brother-in-law's here. He's helping me out with some stuff. Hopefully I can get it sorted soon and then we can go on that date that I missed."

He grinned at her, "I'd like that."

She blushed slightly, "Me too." They both stood in silence for a minute until Paige forced herself to look away from his intense green eyes, "I'd better go. I'm sorry again for missing our lunch date."

He shook his head, "It's okay. If you've got stuff going on then it can't be helped. As long as you promise we'll go out soon."

"Count on it."

He flashed her his cheeky smile and leaned in, giving her a soft kiss on the cheek. He turned and jogged back down the steps, waving as he disappeared around the corner.

Paige smiled to herself and shut the door. She sighed and started back towards the stairs. Now to get back to the problem at hand.

* * *

As she re-entered the attic she saw Leo standing over the Book studying the page.

"Something wrong?"

"It doesn't say here how to find him…" Leo muttered as he scanned the page.

Paige sat down on the couch, "Well, he's an upper level demon, right? So he'll probably be somewhere deep in the underworld. Probably near the Source. Let's just hope we don't run into him!" She sat, staring at her shoes for a minute, "Do you think they're still alive?"

Leo looked up from the Book, "They have to be. If the demons wanted to kill them they'd have done it there and then. They wouldn't have taken them. They must have some other plan for them." Paige didn't look convinced. "Besides which, I'd sense it if they were," He added.

Paige's voice shook slightly as she spoke, "I don't want Piper to die thinking I hate her… I don't."

Leo stepped away from the Book and walked over. He knelt in front of her and placed his hands on her shoulders, "She knows that. It's going to be okay."

"What if it's not? I can't lose them, Leo. Not now."

"You're not going to. We're going to get them back."

"Will we? How? We don't even know how to find this guy!"

"Paige, you need to stay strong. For your sisters." He stood up and pulled Paige to her feet too, "I'm going to go and tell the Elders what we know. Maybe they know something more on him. You just concentrate on getting the athame blessed, okay? I'll be back soon." He smiled reassuringly at her and orbed out.

She sighed shakily and ran a hand through her hair. Walking to the Book, she flipped to the back and thumbed through until she found the potion Leo had been talking about.

She made a mental note of the ingredients she needed then jogged downstairs to the kitchen. As she opened up cupboards searching for what she needed she found herself thinking back to the attack earlier. It was funny really. It was the first time her and Piper had actually got along for a few moments and that she felt they were connected. Sad that it had to be with a demon battle but she felt like they were one, that they were working together as a team.

She hoped that after all this was over they could start again and give it a shot at getting along. She wanted Piper to accept her and maybe even start to like her.

She was a little nervous about making this potion. She'd never made one on her own before. At least she had the recipe to follow upstairs though. It was like Leo said. She just had to stay strong. If she had faith then everything would work out fine. It had to.

Paige set her face in a determined expression. Time to get to work.

* * *

5276 , 5277, 5278, 5279... Piper turned as she heard the cell door open, doing a quick calculation in her head. It had been an hour and a half now since Zoltar had first come down to speak to her. She resisted the urge to punch him, not wanting to endure another painful blast.

He stepped forward into the cell, this time wearing a long, black cloak. He glanced down at Phoebe, who was worryingly still unconscious, and smiled in an amused manner.

Piper had tried a couple more times to wake her now but with no success. She knew that Phoebe had banged her head pretty hard when she had fallen but she was starting to worry that it was something more serious. She just hoped that it was her body's way of healing itself.

Zoltar smiled at Piper, "Ready to say a little spell?"

Piper didn't answer him, instead choosing to glare at him with all the hate she could muster… which was quite a bit.

"Were you not listening earlier? I will harm your sister if you don't say it. It's nothing huge, just a spell to help Paige find you a little quicker. No big deal."

Piper shook her head, "No."

The smile disappeared from Zoltar's face and he stepped forward menacingly. Piper didn't flinch. Not taking his eyes off of her he raised his hand and motioned to the guards outside. They both entered without speaking and bowed their heads. "Separate them."

The guards nodded and one of them bent down and picked Phoebe up, slinging her over his shoulder like a rag doll. Her leg was bent at a funny angle making Piper feel quite sick.

"Put her down! Don't touch her!" She struggled as she felt the other guard's arm go round her waist in an attempt to restrain her. "Let go of me!"

Zoltar put his hand under her chin and raised her head to meet his gaze, "Last chance. Say the spell."

Piper jerked her head away from his grasp, "Screw you." She flung her hands out in an attempt to blow him up but nothing happened.

"Silly Witch…" He muttered before pointing his hand towards her.

Once again her head erupted in pain and she screamed in agony. It was like her entire skull was on fire. She scrunched her eyes up tight and writhed against the demon holding her in an effort to escape but to no avail. The pain suddenly intensified to the point where she felt like she was going to be sick. Dark grey circles appeared in front of her eyes and she struggled to breathe. Suddenly her body went limp as she passed out.

Zoltar smiled cruelly and lowered his hand. He snapped his gaze to the demons who were holding the witches and barked his orders at them. "Take them. Keep them separated."

The guards nodded once and strode out of the tiny cave with the sisters over their shoulders.

* * *

A/N: Reviews are more than welcome :)


	10. The Calm Before The Storm

As Phoebe slowly came to she was all too aware of the dull pain pulsing through her head. She remained lying still with her eyes shut while she tried to get her brain to cooperate with her. She wasn't sure what had happened exactly… her last memories of some sort of attack were still jumbled up with thoughts of what she'd had for breakfast last Thursday… but she knew it had to be something supernatural.

Feeling more herself than she had a couple of seconds ago, she mentally checked herself all over for injuries. The only place she seemed to hurt was her head which felt like it had a parade of cymbal-striking monkeys marching through it.

Deciding that she couldn't put it off any longer, she opened her eyes and squinted in the dim light. She was in in some sort of cave. Torches cast a flickering light over the stone walls and gave the whole place an uneasy feel.

Bracing herself, Phoebe pushed herself onto her hands and knees. She was unpleasantly surprised when an agonizing pain shot through her left leg making her cry out and fall back down onto her stomach.

"I wouldn't try to move if I were you."

Phoebe jumped at the unfamiliar voice and turned her head to see who was speaking. Unable to see anyone, she carefully rolled onto her back and then sat up, trying her best to keep her leg as still as possible. She couldn't stop herself from moaning in pain as the bones shifted against each other slightly making her feel queasy and light headed.

"I did try and warn you…"

She gazed around the seemingly empty cave again but still couldn't see anyone, "Who are you?"

"Your leg was broken during the struggle. I'm afraid you fell rather awkwardly."

Phoebe spun her head in the direction the voice seemed to be coming from, "Show yourself." When no one appeared she grew impatient, "Show yourself!"

A demon stepped out of thin air and grabbed her by the arm. He dragged her backwards, ignoring her shrieks of pain, and slammed her roughly against the wall. "You don't give the orders around here witch!" Conjuring some chains in his hands, he quickly shackled Phoebe's wrists to an iron ring set into the cave wall.

Phoebe grunted in discomfort. He had shackled her in such a way that she was forced to stay in a standing position. To try and minimize the pain in her leg she had to put all her weight on her right leg. She knew that pretty soon her back would be aching unbearably.

She glanced at the demon who was standing close by simply watching her, as if waiting for her to say something. Phoebe sighed impatiently, "So come on then! What do you want with me? And where are my sisters? You'd better be sure of what you're doing because when they come looking for me they're going to vanquish you and believe me… it's going to hurt like hell." She smiled triumphantly but her smile quickly faded to a look of confusion as the demon began to laugh. "What's so funny?"

He took a few minutes to calm himself then smiled smugly at her, "Your sisters are dead, witch."

It took a second to fully register what he'd just said but when she did, Phoebe shook her head stubbornly, "No. You're lying." The demon started to laugh again and Phoebe lunged towards him, ignoring the sharp pain that shot through her leg again, only to be held back by the chains, "Take that back you bastard!"

The demon chuckled, "Anger really isn't the best way to grieve, Phoebe…" He walked away from her then paused and turned slightly, "You're on your own now. No sisters to rescue this time." He smiled at her once more before shimmering out, leaving Phoebe on her own, tears running down her face.

The demon paced back and forth in his lair feeling pleased with himself. One of his minions stepped forward and spoke nervously, "Sir… If I may… What was the point in making her think her sister's are dead?"

"Point?" The demon laughed, "There is no point. This is just for fun."

* * *

Paige stirred the mixture in the potion pot thoughtfully and frowned as she looked at it. The green liquid was bubbling away nicely but… the picture in the Book showed a pink potion.

It had been annoying enough when she'd lugged all the ingredients she needed up to the attic only to find out that they had to be heated as they were mixed together. Which had meant lugging them all the way back downstairs again. But now the end result didn't even look anything like it was supposed to.

She bent over the Book of Shadows and scanned the page carefully again trying to see what she'd missed. "Add the crush Ague root to the pot and simmer for ten minutes stirring continuously. Sprinkle a pinch of powdered toadstool over the surface of the potion and finish with a dash of rosemary…"

She slammed her hand down on the book in triumph. "Rosemary!" she exclaimed loudly as she moved the various dishes and plates of ingredients round searching for the right one. Finding it, she threw a small amount into the potion, which puffed out a cloud of smoke before turning pink. "Ha!" She shouted proudly.

"It's going well then?"

Paige jumped at the sound of Leo's voice and looked up from the pot to see him stood in the doorway smiling at her in amusement.

"It's going very well indeed… even if I say so myself…"

Leo walked over to where she was working and glanced down at the potion, "Is it nearly done?"

"It just needs to cool then I drop in the athame and add a little of my blood. The potion will go poof and we will be left with one fabulously blessed athame!" She clicked her fingers above her head for emphasis and grinned at him. When he didn't return the smile she nudged him, "What is it?"

"I'm just worried that's all. They've been gone for hours now. And from what the Elder's have said about Zoltar it's not going to be easy to vanquish him."

Paige made an exaggerated hand gesture to the potion, "Hello! We have the blessed athame. We've just got to stab him and then he'll go pop like all the others."

"Pop?"

She waved a hand at him, "You know what I mean…"

"Paige, you don't seem to be grasping the severity of the situation. The Book is out of date. He isn't going to be easy to stab. He's a very powerful demon. He's also an extremely good fighter who's obtained goodness knows how many powers over the years."

"Well then we'll just have to try and get to Piper and Phoebe first and free them. At least that way he'll have the Power of Three to go up against and you're always banging on about how there's nothing more powerful than that."

Leo looked at the floor, "I know. I'm just not sure that's the case with him. You've never been up against anyone so powerful before."

"You know, your pep talks are really amazing. You're making me feel so much better." Paige rolled her eyes sarcastically and tested the temperature of the potion with one of her fingers, letting out a yelp when she realised it was still quite hot. "Can I add ice to this or will it ruin it?"

"No, it should be fine. I'll get some."

He fetched the tray from the freezer and pushed a few cubes out onto the counter. He watched as Paige dropped them into the potion and stirred it slightly before replacing the spoon on the side and eyeing him suspiciously.

"Okay, Leo. Spill. There's obviously something you're not telling me. I can see it in your eyes."

Leo sighed heavily and walked over to the kitchen table. He sat back on it and stared down at the floor, not meeting her gaze.

Paige followed him and stood just in front of him with her hands on her hips, "What is it?"

"The Elders have decided that I'm not allowed to go down to the underworld with you. You have to go alone."

"What?! Why?"

"They said that it'll be good for you and that it'll give you an opportunity to realise your full potential."

"Get me killed you mean!"

Leo stood up and put his hands on her shoulders, "Calm down…"

She shrugged him off roughly and walked a little away from him, "Don't tell me to calm down, Leo! They expect me to go down to the underworld, on my own, with no idea what powers this guy has, no idea where Piper or Phoebe are and all I have to defend myself with is a stupid little athame which, according to you, I'm not even going to be able to get close enough to him to use!" She hung her head and buried her face in her hands.

Leo reached out and placed a hand comfortingly on her shoulder, "Don't cry… It'll be okay."

Paige shrugged him away again, "I'm not crying, I'm resisting the urge to hit someone!"

Leo stepped back a couple of steps nervously as Page glanced up at him, "Can't you just ignore the Elders? Come down to the underworld with me anyway! I can't do this alone!"

"I can't, Paige. They're my bosses. I have to do as I'm told."

"Even at the expense of your own family?" When Leo's face crumpled Paige knew she'd gone too far, "I'm sorry. That wasn't fair."

"No. It wasn't. I'd come down to the underworld with you if I could but even if I did disobey them and go anyway. They'd know. And then they'd just force-orb me out of there. I don't have a choice."

Paige slumped down into one of the kitchen chairs, "So what do we do?"

"We bless the athame. Then you reverse the To Call A Lost Sister spell so that it takes you to them."

"I already tried that spell after they were taken."

"There's probably something blocking the magic to stop you summoning them but if I'm right then he wants you to go looking for them so there shouldn't be a problem with it taking you down there."

"Great…"

"You can do this Paige."

"I'm glad one of us is confident in my abilities."

"Let's get this potion finished." He offered her his hand, which she accepted, and pulled her to her feet.

* * *

Zoltar approached the minion who was bowing low to the ground in front of him, "Rise, Jebidous. You need not bow to me. You have proven your worth."

"Thank you my lord. What is it you wish of me?"

Zoltar didn't answer for a moment. He walked away a few steps and stood with his back to Jebidous thinking deeply. There was no room for mistakes. Not this close to the end.

He could hear the frustrated shouting and cursing of the older sister even though she was several caverns away from him. Her anger amused him and he smiled. From the moment she'd woken up to discover she was alone, chained to a wall and her sister was nowhere to be seen she'd started making that horrendous noise. Screaming, shouting, swearing. She done it all. He'd glanced in at one point, unnoticed by her of course, to see her pummelling the cave wall. It had been entertaining to watch for a while but there were things to be done.

He turned back to Jebidous who was waiting patiently for instructions, "The youngest will soon be on her way. As soon as she finds the eldest I will do what needs to be done and we will have a Charmed one on our side. On the side of evil. And then the Source will reward me handsomely." He leaned forward slightly, the light from the torches casting a dim glow over his face, "I no longer have any need for the middle sister though. You may dispose of her."

As Jebidous bowed and turned to leave, Zoltar added, "However, don't forget that we're demons. The Charmed Ones have cost us many allies over the years. Make sure she doesn't die too quickly."

Jebidous nodded and left the cavern.

* * *

Paige winced as she sliced the blade across her finger. She made a hissing noise with her teeth and glared at Leo, "I thought you said it wouldn't hurt?"

Leo ignored her, "Squeeze a couple of drops into the potion."

Paige rolled her eyes but did as she was told. She jumped as the potion made a large bang noise and spirals of purple smoke erupted from the pot. She glanced tentatively inside and grinned as she reached in and pulled out the athame, tucking it into the back of her trousers. "Well, the potion's disappeared. I guess that means it worked."

Leo held the Book of Shadows out to her, "Now you just need to read the spell. It should take you right to them."

Paige nodded, "I free them, we kick ass and stab the son of a bitch. Then we come home. Simple." She chewed her lip anxiously.

"You'll be fine. I have faith in you."

Paige breathed out slowly, "Well… I guess it's now or never." She looked up at Leo and smiled nervously, "Wish me luck."

He surprised her by pulling her into a hug, "Good luck."

Paige smiled again, this time feeling slightly better. Taking a deep breath she began to chant.

* * *

Phoebe hung limply in her chains, her leg twisted at an awkward angle. It was hurting incessantly and she knew that she was probably doing more damage to it by not keeping the weight off of it but she didn't care anymore.

Her sisters were gone. It was over.

She'd tried not to believe it at first but as the hours dragged slowly by she found herself unable to deny the truth. If they were alive then where were they? It wouldn't take them this long to find her.

Tears made continuous tracks down her face as she stared miserably at the dirt covered floor. Her eyes were red and puffed up from crying and her throat was raw.

Hearing footsteps, she glanced up and saw Jeb, the man from the hospital, stroll into view.

"Jeb?" Her voice was hoarse from sobbing, "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

Jeb remained silent as he walked closer. He stopped a few feet away from her and studied her for a moment.

"Are you a witch? Listen, there's a powerful demon around here. You need to get out of here fast!" She looked confused as a fireball appeared in his hand. "Jeb…?"

He launched the fireball towards her. It hit the metal ring securing the chains to the wall and broke them making Phoebe crumple to the floor in a scream of pain.

"You bastard! You weren't trying to help Paige at all were you?"

"Clever witch," He said sarcastically, conjuring a double sided blade in his hand.

Phoebe shuffled away from him, "You stay from me. Haven't you done enough? My sisters are dead!"

"And you're going to join them soon," He lashed out with the blade and sliced a long cut down her arm making her cry out, "But not too soon..."

* * *

A/N: The next update might take a little while. My Mum's getting married this Sunday (I'm giving her away :D) so it's kind of hectic around here at the moment. Then she's flying off on her honeymoon for a week so I'll be looking after my little brother and sister. I'll try and get it updated as soon as I can though (I know this chapter took a while to do) and as always - please leave a review!


	11. In The Underworld

A/N: Hi guys, I had a spare moment today so I thought I'd get another chapter in while I had chance. It's a little shorter than the last couple of chapters but I'm happier with this one than I have been with the previous couple so I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it :)

* * *

Paige blinked several times, temporarily blinded by the white lights that had engulfed her as she was transported down to the underworld. Her vision cleared just in time to see a fire ball heading in her direction. She reacted without thinking. She called for the fire ball and sent it hurtling back in the direction it had come from. Hearing a shout and a small bang she knew that it had found it's mark.

She ducked as she sensed another one heading towards her and couldn't help smirking as it missed her and instead hit another demon, vanquishing it. She spun on her heel and saw that there was just one left. He ran at her but she quickly sidestepped him and sent him crashing to the ground with a well aimed shove between the shoulder blades. As he fell, he landed on a particularly sharp boulder sticking up from the floor and burst into flames.

"Great start, Paige," She mumbled to herself as she glanced around and saw that the coast was clear. Too clear. There was no sign of her sisters. She concentrated on taking a couple of deep breaths as she felt the panic beginning to rise inside her. The spell hadn't worked. It was supposed to have taken her straight to them. Why hadn't it?

Now as far as she was aware, she was stuck in the underworld with no idea of her bearings and no clue as to where they were.

A small voice started up in the back of her brain making her think the worse. Maybe they're dead…. Maybe this is where they're buried. She shook her head in an attempt to get rid of the voice and banged the palm of her hand against her head a couple of times.

It suddenly struck her how cold it was. She'd never been to the underworld before. Somehow she'd always expected it to be warm. Maybe because most of the demons she'd seen wandered around with not much clothing on. She could actually see her breath coming out of her mouth.

There were several caverns linking onto the one she was stood in and she glanced at each of the entrance ways in turn trying to decide which route to take. She opted for the middle one in the end and cautiously made her way forward.

Fifteen minutes later she was stood in another cavern more or less identical to the one she'd started in. She had a feeling she was going in circles. Everywhere looked the same! It was almost like a labyrinth And so far, apart from her welcoming committee, she'd come across no more demons which she found a bit odd. Surely there'd be guards stationed everywhere in anticipation of her arrival? She'd have thought that Zoltar would realise she was on her way to rescue them and have demons on stand by.

Unless this was some sort of trap… Which was highly possible. She decided that there was nothing she could do about it for now and that she'd just have to be look out for any trouble.

As she entered the next cavern she saw the same sharp boulder protruding from the floor and a faint black mark where the demon had blown up. Great. She steeled herself and headed for the cavern on the right instead. She sped up slightly. She could be here all night at this rate!

* * *

Phoebe coughed painfully as her chest hit the shelf of rock sticking out from the wall with a lung crushing thump. The pain in her leg was nothing now compared to the pain she felt running through her entire body.

Blood ran in rivulets from an open wound on her head. Her ribs were either really badly bruised or fractured, she couldn't tell. Her once broken leg was now so badly damaged she was guessing that the only thing holding it together was skin. Everything hurt. She coughed again and clutched at her chest in agony as a dribble of blood ran from her mouth to the ground.

She braced her hand against the floor as she tried to push herself up onto her good leg but Jeb's boot came out of nowhere and slammed down onto her hand with savage force, crushing her fingers. She screamed out loud but he clearly still wasn't satisfied as he ground his boot into her hand harder.

Tears streamed from her eyes, blinding her and making the nightmare ten times worse. She felt a blunt force hit her in the face knocking her backwards. She hit the floor with a jarring thud and scrambled to get away from the unrelenting attack.

Her hands scrabbled behind her trying to reach for something… anything… to help her. Her fingers closed around a fist sized rock and as he bent to grab hold of her again she swung her arm with every bit of force she could muster and smacked him across the face with it.

He fell like a ton of bricks and crumpled to the ground. Even though he remained unmoving she advanced on him quickly and brought the rock down over and over onto his skull until eventually flames engulfed his body and a small explosion blew his very existence from the world.

Phoebe let out a scream of pain and anguish. Falling back onto the floor she lay in a heap and cried deep gut wrenching sobs until eventually darkness claimed her.

* * *

Piper struggled furiously with her restraints. Holding on firmly to the chain and bracing one foot against the cave wall she tugged as hard as she could. When nothing happened she let out a cry of frustration and began yanking on it as hard as she could over and over again but to no avail. The chain remained firmly embedded in the stone wall. She'd been at this for hours now and with each failed attempt she grew more and more desperate. She had to know what had happened to Phoebe, where had they taken her? What were they doing to her?

At one point she'd even resorted to trying to scratch away at the stone… until her nail had snapped. Then she had been reduced to kicking, screaming and punching at the wall. It wasn't working though and she was starting to give up hope.

Resting her back against the wall, she slid down into a crouching position and rubbed her wrists. They were starting to bruise from all the pulling at the chains and the metal cuffs that were secured round them were starting to chafe pretty badly. Her knuckles were bruised and bleeding and the finger from which her nail had snapped was crusted with dried blood and throbbing painfully.

Hearing a noise, she snapped her gaze up to the cave entrance. When no one appeared she slowly stood up and took a step forward, "Who's there?"

Nothing.

She heard another noise and frowned, raising her voice, "Who is that?" She heard footsteps approaching and quickly stepped back against the cave wall wondering whether it had been wise to call out or not.

"Piper…?"

It was Paige's voice!

It only took Piper a split second to react, she ran forward a few steps calling out her sister's name desperately.

Unfortunately in her haste she'd momentarily forgotten that she was chained to a wall and her arms were yanked back painfully behind her as she moved, sending her toppling backwards onto the hard floor. As she struggled to get back into a sitting position Paige appeared at the cave entrance.

"Paige!" Piper didn't think she'd ever been so glad to see someone before in her life.

"Piper! Thank God I found you! I've been so worried!" She started to run over but slowed to a stop as she glanced around the otherwise empty cave, "But… Where's Phoebe?"

"I don't know," Piper answered tearfully, "They took her somewhere. I haven't seen her since."

Although worry instantly engulfed her, Paige knew that the most important thing at the minute was to get Piper out of there. She closed the gap between the two of them and knelt at Piper's side resting a hand on her shoulder comfortingly, "Are you hurt?"

"I'll live."

Paige nodded and pulled hard at one of the chains, she stopped as Piper shook her head, "I've already tried that - a lot. They won't come free."

"Do you know where the demon is?"

"I'm right here."

Paige jumped up and spun round to face the voice. Behind her she could hear Piper scrambling to her feet.

The demon walked slowly into the room, the hood of his cloak pulled up over his head causing his face to be concealed in shadow. He was on his own and appeared to be completely calm… almost casual. His hands were clasped behind his back as he strolled closer. "It didn't take you as long to find her as I thought it would. I'm impressed."

Paige snorted, "Save it. Where's my other sister?"

"That's not important. What is important however, is where we go from here."

"Simple really, I vanquish you then me and my sisters go home."

"I've always admired your fighting spirit." He lowered his hood and smiled, "That's one of the first things that caught my attention."

Paige let out an audible gasp, "Michael?"

"You know him?" Piper asked in disbelief.

Paige took a step towards him, ignoring Piper, "Michael, what's going on? What are you doing here? You're not…?" She left her sentence hanging as it suddenly clicked. She shook her head disbelief, "You're the demon. You're Zoltar? You took my sisters!"

"Well, I didn't take them personally but it was me who gave the order for their capture."

"But why?"

"Because they don't trust you Paige. They don't treat you right, they don't fully appreciate you the way I do. They see you as a burden. I see you as an amazing woman and a very powerful witch who has the ability to be so much more."

"That's not true!" Piper's voice sounded out suddenly from behind Paige, "Of course we appreciate her! Without her there'd be no Power of Three, no-"

"You see?" Zoltar interrupted, "All they see you as is a tool. The only reason they have you around is to complete the Power of Three. They don't want you for you."

Paige nodded slowly, never taking her eyes off his.

"But I don't think of you like that. Join me. Together we can be more powerful than you could ever dream. No more responsibilities. An end to being unappreciated. Unloved. They don't want you. I do."

"Paige…." Piper's quiet voice was pleading with her.

"Look at how they treated you. At how she treated you. Like an outcast, like you didn't belong, like you were unwelcome."

"You're right," Paige took a step towards him and gave a sad smile.

He smiled back at her and extended his hand, "Come with me."

Paige nodded and slowly walked up to him.

"No!" Piper pulled against her chains trying to get closer to the pair, "Paige, don't listen to him!"

Ignoring her sister's pleas, Paige looked up at Zoltar, "I felt like an intruder. Like I wasn't good enough. Unwanted."

"I promise, you'll never have to feel like that again." He offered her his hand again.

Paige smiled and slowly raised her hand to meet his, "I'm glad." She closed her fingers around Zoltar's hand and smiled at him.

* * *

A/N: Mwahahahahahaaaa!!! Reviews? lol


	12. From Bad To Worse

A/N: Well, my folks are back off honeymoon and I'm officially free from 'Mum duty' with my younger siblings. It's a lot harder than it seems. A week playing the parent has been better than any contraceptive out there. I'm NEVER having kids… well… not for at least ten years or so lol. They're not badly behaved or anything - it's just exhausting!!! Anyway, here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

"Paige… No…" Piper's voice was no more than a whisper, "We do need you. _I_ need you."

Zoltar led Paige away from Piper slightly and squeezed her hand, "It's all going to be different from now on. I promise."

"I know it will," Paige smiled.

She gripped his hand suddenly and pulled him towards her while, at the same time, she pulled the athame from the back of her jeans and thrust it towards him. He moved quickly and twisted out of the way at the last second making her stab empty air and stumble. Spinning back towards her, he smashed his elbow into the side of her face, knocking her to the floor. The athame slid across the ground.

Paige landed heavily on her side, half winding herself. As she went to stand up he delivered a sharp kick to her stomach that sent her skidding across the cave floor.

She could hear Piper shouting something but couldn't make out what it was. Something was pressing down hard on her back and she realised that he was holding her down with his foot.

"I should have guessed you were merely toying with me. Stupid witch, did you really think you could defeat me?"

Suddenly, he had hold of her hair and was dragging her to her feet. He held her off the ground by her throat for a moment and put his face right up close to hers, "Last chance. Join me."

She acted without thinking and spat in his face. Letting out an angry yell he threw her across the cave. She hit the wall and fell to the ground in a heap. Her eyes were scrunched up in pain but she could hear his footsteps approaching and braced herself.

Piper watched as he marched angrily over to her fallen sister. He glanced over at her and smirked before swinging his leg out and kicking Paige hard across the face, sending a spray of blood up the cave wall and instantly knocking her out. Zoltar picked her up by one arm and studied her face, he looked back over to Piper, "I'll leave her to think things over." He let go of Paige's arm, making her drop like a stone to the hard floor.

"Time to go visit your other sister," he said to Piper, "I'll tell her you said hi." He marched out of the cave, only stopping once to retrieve the fallen athame.

The moment he was out of sight Piper dropped to her knees and tried desperately to get to Paige. She strained her arms against the chains in a vain effort to reach her but it was no good. She was too far away.

Piper fell back against the wall in a huff of defeat. This was hopeless. She was chained to a wall, Paige was unconscious and from what she could tell quite badly injured, and Phoebe was God-knows-where having God-knows-what done to her.

They were the Charmed ones for crying out loud. How had he defeated them so easily?

She hung her head in shame. She knew how. It was because they'd been so distracted by their petty quarrels and differences that they hadn't seen the attack coming until it was too late. Although, Phoebe had been trying to stop the bickering between her and Paige so she couldn't really be blamed. And Paige had been going on about demons only the other day but Piper had refused to listen. So that just left her.

Closing her eyes, she finally allowed a few tears to escape and trail down her face.

This was all her fault.

* * *

Zoltar strode into the large cavern expecting to see the dead body of Phoebe Halliwell and a triumphant Jebidous. Instead he was greeted by a bloodied scorch mark, which he assumed must be all that remained of his right hand man, and a bruised and bloodied witch lying unconscious across the floor.

Other than a slight frown, his face gave nothing away as he slowly circled the fallen witch contemplating what to do with her.

Her leg was a mess. It appeared to be broken just below the knee but what had once been a clean break now resembled a mushy purple sack. It looked pretty revolting and he guessed that it must have been the pain of it that caused her to pass out.

He bent at the waist and examined her a bit closer. It looked as though she'd received a hell of a beating before she finally managed to vanquish Jebidous. He wondered briefly how she'd done it but then dismissed that thought knowing that it didn't matter.

Conjuring a fire ball, he lightly tossed it back and forth between his hands. It would be so easy to kill her now. Just to throw the fire ball and have done with her. He clapped his hands together and extinguished it. But that would be too easy. Too boring. He wanted her to suffer some more first.

He waved his hand over her body and a metal cage appeared, trapping her where she was. He'd leave her there for now until he decided what to do. There was no rush.

With a smirk, he turned on his heel and strode from the cavern.

* * *

Afternoon had turned to evening. Evening turned to night time. And they still weren't back.

Leo ran a hand through his hair as he wandered aimlessly round the manor. It was driving him mad. He had no idea what was taking so long. He didn't know what was happening. What if they were hurt? Or trapped? Or both?

He'd been to see the Elders to see if they knew anything but they were as cagey as ever, refusing to tell him anything and advising him to 'have faith'.

Well, he was sick of 'having faith' and being left to wonder whether his family were still alive. He wanted answers and he wanted them now! With a frustrated cry he spun and slammed his fist into the wall.

He'd already tried orbing down there but, as he'd predicted earlier, the moment he materialised the Elders had orbed him back again.

"This is ridiculous!" He shouted towards the ceiling, "I'm their Whitelighter! I'm supposed to protect them!"

He received no response.

Letting out another sigh of frustration, he turned to the stairs and jogged up them to the attic. He crossed the room to the Book and flipped through until he came to Zoltar's page. He scanned it briefly seeing nothing different there since the last time he'd looked.

He had to do something.

He _had_ to!

He drummed his fingers on the pedestal as he thought. Glancing down at the Book again, he smiled. He may not be able to go to them but he could help a little. He could reverse the bad luck that had been put on Paige. It may be enough to swing the battle in their favour, even if only by a fraction. He began to flip the pages, in search of the spell to reverse a curse.

* * *

Everything hurt. It hurt so much that she struggled to remember what it felt like not to be in pain. She shifted her weight slightly and nearly passed out again as a ripple of agony passed through her beaten body. The slightest twitch in her leg was enough to make her scream.

She raised her head a couple of millimetres from the ground and saw the thick iron bars in front of her. She jumped slightly in surprise and then nearly threw up as white hot pain coursed through her leg.

As slowly as she could, she moved her arms in front of her and took hold of the bars, giving them an experimental shake. As she suspected, they were rock solid. There was no way she had any hope of shifting them. To make matters worse the top of the cage was a mere couple of centimetres above her head. She was stuck in this position.

Not that she could really move anyway. Her broken leg… well, her pulverised leg… was causing her way too much pain. She was having difficulty breathing.

Maybe that's it, she thought to herself. Maybe she should just give in and die? She had nothing left for her here. Her family had been killed.

Cole. She still had Cole.

It seemed like a lifetime ago now that he'd left again to go on the run from the bounty hunters. What she wouldn't give for him to be here now. Holding her. Comforting her. Helping her.

"Cole…" Her voice was little more than a whimper but it sounded strangely loud in the silence of the cave. She seized hold of the bars again and shook them with all her might, "Let me out of here you bastard! Haven't you done enough?! Let me out! LET ME OUT!!! You want me dead?! Then come and finish me off yourself!"

She screamed, shouted and swore but to no avail. There was no sign of the demon responsible for her misery and pain. "You coward," she muttered bitterly as she sobbed into the dirt, "You fucking coward…"

* * *

A/N - I know this chapter was quite short, especially compared to my other chapters but I promise you that the next chapter is much longer. I also apologise to anyone who may not have been happy with Phoebe's language there at the end. I don't usually make the Charmed one's use any words stronger than 'bastard' but I felt it was fairly fitting considering Phoebe's circumstances. Please review!


	13. Together

Paige let out a small groan as she slowly woke up. Everything hurt. Her face felt tight and unusual. She put her hand to it and felt a large amount of dry blood crusted to her skin. Her jaw was stiff and sore as well from where Zoltar had smashed his elbow into it. She wiggled it slightly and scrunched up her eyes as a dull ache made it's way up her jaw line. She rolled onto her back and let out a louder groan as she felt a sharp pain rip through her shoulder.

"Paige…?"

She frowned as she tried to place a name to the voice. She knew it… She was sure of it. She shook her head trying to shake away the cloudy feeling.

"Paige… Are you okay?"

Piper. It was Piper.

"Can you hear me, sweetie?"

Sweetie? Maybe it wasn't Piper after all. She'd never spoken to her like that before. She made an unrecognisable sound and tried to sit up, falling back again heavily as every muscle in her body screamed at her.

"Easy, honey. Slow."

There it was again. That gentle, soothing voice that sounded so much like Piper yet didn't at the same time. She twisted her neck slightly trying to see where she was. She spotted Piper knelt not too far away. She was still shackled to the wall.

"Piper…" Her jaw refused to cooperate with her. Her words sounding muffled and slurred.

"Yeah, it's me," Piper said with a small smile.

"How long was I out?" She willed the ceiling to stop spinning and for the horrible groggy feeling to disappear.

"A couple hours at least. Can you sit up? Where does it hurt?"

Paige took a shaky breath and made a second attempt at moving into a sitting position. She was more successful this time and with a little awkward manoeuvring she managed to swivel her body round so that she was leaning with her back against the wall. She panted slightly from the effort and swallowed, trying to wet her extremely dry throat. She felt dizzy and closed her eyes trying to steady herself.

"Paige." Piper's voice was slightly more serious now. It had more authority to it and made Paige feel as if she had to do as she was told. She opened her eyes wearily and tried to focus on Piper. "You need to stay awake, okay? Keep your eyes open."

"I'm so tired though…" Again, her voice sounded slurred. Almost as if she was on drugs.

"I know you are, sweetie, but you need to stay awake. Just for now." As Paige's eyelids started to droop again, Piper made another desperate attempt to get her attention, "Paige, please. I need you."

Without warning a golden glow appeared around Paige. She felt warm all of a sudden and kind of tingly. She stared down at her hands as they glimmered for a moment but then just as quickly as it had appeared the light faded again until she was once more aware of the pain throbbing through her and the cold and tiredness draining her body and clouding her senses.

"What was that? What happened?" Piper asked in a hushed tone but Paige merely shrugged weakly and closed her eyes again, exhaustion taking over. Piper dropped it for now guessing that Paige knew as much about what had just happened as she did. Seeing her head start to droop again, Piper pulled against her chains, "Paige, wake up! We need to save Phoebe. I need you to help me think of a plan. I can't do this without you."

Paige opened her eyes again and leant forward slightly in an attempt to stay awake, "How do we save her?"

Piper shook her head, "I'm not sure. You need to help me think of a plan. I don't even know how to kill the demon."

"Zoltar…" Paige mumbled.

"What?"

"His name's Zoltar… In the Book. It said…" She frowned and put a hand to her head as pain shot through it.

"Keep going, Paige. What did it say?"

"Kill him… To kill him… We have to stab him."

"Stab him?"

"Athame. Blessed with blood."

"Who's blood?" asked Piper trying to keep Paige talking. She was concerned by how 'out of it' Paige seemed.

Paige took a shuddering breath and closed her eyes again, "Blood… My blood... I blessed it… We need to stab him…" She opened her eyes and looked around the cave, "Where is it?"

"Zoltar took it with him."

Paige sighed and struggled to her feet, placing a shaky arm on the cave wall to steady herself, "We need to get it back…"

Piper stood up too and rattled the chains that were attached to her wrists, "I can't go anywhere at the minute."

Paige stared at Piper, her eyes struggling to focus properly. She smiled suddenly, a dreamy kind of smile and held out her hands, "Chains."

The chains disappeared from around Piper's wrists and reappeared in Paige's arms. She dropped them almost immediately and put a hand out to catch herself as her legs wobbled unsteadily and she nearly lost her balance.

Piper looked down at her wrists in amazement, "What? I tried blasting the chains earlier but my powers wouldn't work!" She threw her hands out at the cave wall and smiled as a small explosion occurred, causing a shower of rubble to fall and a cloud of dust to form. "They must have been holding my powers as well as me." She looked up and smiled at Paige but then looked concerned as she saw how pale Paige had gone. Paler than normal.

She rushed forward and put an arm round her waist, supporting her. "Are you okay?" Paige nodded. "Are you going to be sick?" Paige frowned slightly, seeming to consider it then nodded sharply. Piper stepped back slightly but wrapped an arm around her sister's stomach to support her and held her hair back from her face as Paige doubled over and vomited onto the cave floor.

Eventually she was reduced to dry heaves and then finally nothing. She leaned back against her sister slightly and allowed Piper to steer her across to the other side of the cave and back down into a sitting position.

She felt a pressure on the back of her head and found herself leaning down until her head was between her knees. She stayed there for a couple of minutes and soon the faintness seemed to wear off slightly. She raised her head cautiously and blinked a couple of times. She still felt groggy, just not quite as bad as she had.

"Better?"

"A little..."

Piper brushed Paige's hair from her face, "Do you still feel tired?"

Paige nodded wearily, "Very. And cold."

Piper wrapped her arm around Paige's shoulders and ran her hand briskly up and down Paige's arm in an attempt to warm her up, "You need to try and stay awake, ok? We need to get to Phoebe." She got to her feet and offered her hand to Paige who accepted it and got clumsily to her feet. Piper wrapped her arm around Paige's waist again to support her and smiled reassuringly, "Ready to save our sister and kick some serious demon ass?"

Paige gave a sigh, "Why not?"

"Just remember… No matter what happens… We're in this together."

Paige glanced at Piper who gave her a warm smile and a slight squeeze. Somehow that made her feel ten times better than she had a second ago.

* * *

Back at the manor, Leo smiled gratefully at the elderly witch who stood before him and closed the Book of Shadows with a soft thump. It had taken a lot of effort to make the spell work but now it finally had.

When he'd first found the spell to break the bad luck curse that had been placed on Paige he'd been over the moon. Finally, he could do something. He could help. But his happiness had been dashed when he realised that the spell had been written in such a way that it could only be cast by a member of the Halliwell line. He'd tried doing it himself a couple of times. Sometimes spells worked for him but, as he soon found out, not ones that had been specifically written for a Halliwell witch.

He'd had to jump through a lot of hoops to get the Elders to allow him to conjure a descendent of the girl's but they'd finally relented and given him permission. Now that Paige was no longer cursed, maybe it would help in their fight against Zoltar. He just hoped he wasn't too late.

He smiled again at the woman, "Thanks for your help, Penny."

She waved a hand at him dismissively, "Of course. I may be dead but that doesn't mean I want my Granddaughters joining me anytime soon. Anything I can do to help…"

Leo nodded appreciatively, "I'll keep that in mind but that's all I need you to do for now."

"That's it?" Leo nodded and Penny sighed, "Well, if you insist. If you need anything else though, don't hesitate to ask." She turned away, "I feel so useless at times like this." Leo smiled sympathetically at her as she faded away into nothing.

At least now the spell had been cast Zoltar wouldn't be able to use Paige's bad luck curse against her now. It was only a small thing but it may be just the thing the girls needed to give them that extra push.

Restless now that he had nothing else to do, Leo strolled slowly back down the stairs until he reached the ground floor. Crossing the room, he sank down onto one of the sofas and leant with his elbows resting on his knees. He clicked his fingers, clapped his hands and twiddled his thumbs, then stood up and turned round on the spot. They still weren't back. He glanced up at the ceiling a couple of times before declaring loudly, "I'm bored!"

"Then get a hobby…" Came a smooth voice from behind him. Spinning on spot he saw Cole stood at the foot of the stairs.

"Cole?"

Cole smirked, "Always make sure you're on your own before you start talking to yourself."

"I wasn't… I… You…" Leo stammered, trying to get his words out. Cole's amused expression was starting to irritate him and he eventually managed to snap, "Where in hell's name have you been?!"

"Er… I think you just answered your own question," He smiled at Leo but then frowned when the smile wasn't returned, "What's your problem?" He glanced around, "Where's Phoebe?"

"I don't know," Leo replied through gritted teeth, "While you've been off gallivanting around the world Phoebe and Piper were abducted by demons."

Cole, who'd been strolling towards the kitchen, stopped in his tracks and turned back to face Leo, "What?"

"Paige has gone after them but the Elders wouldn't let me go with her so she's down there on her own."

Cole shook his head trying to make sense of what Leo was telling him, "Whoa, slow down. Demons? What demons?"

"Minions. It doesn't matter. What does matter is who they were working for. Zoltar."

"Zoltar?!" Cole's mouth dropped open, "Wait a minute… Are you telling me that Paige, an extremely inexperienced witch, has gone down to the underworld, on her own, to fight one of the most powerful demons there is?"

"Well, I'm hoping she can get to her sisters and free them before she has to fight him."

Cole stood silently for a couple of seconds before bursting into laughter, "That's a good one, Leo. You really had me going for a minute."

"I'm serious!" Leo snapped impatiently.

Taking slow, casual steps, Cole crossed the room until he was standing directly in front of Leo, "You're not joking?" Leo shook his head. "They're really gone?" Leo nodded. "I see…" Without warning Cole suddenly grabbed the front of Leo's shirt and shook him violently, "How could you let this happen?!"

Leo pushed him away roughly, "Hey! Back off! At least I was here to help Paige prepare! Where were you when it all went down?"

"Trying to stay alive," Cole said quietly. "I don't have time for this." He stepped away from Leo and began to shimmer.

"Wait a minute!" Leo grabbed Cole's arm and dragged him out of his shimmer, "Where are you going?"

"To save the one I love… The same thing you should be doing."

"The Elders have forbidden me to…"

Cole cut him off, "Well, tell you what, Leo. You sit here, nice and safe. Put your feet up. Read the newspaper. I'm going to do what I have to. No matter what anyone says." He gave Leo one last disgusted look before shimmering out.

"Great…"

* * *

A/N: I hope you liked this chapter, sorry if it's a bit off, I'm ill at the minute and not feeling my best. I hope you enjoyed it anyway. As always, please leave a comment and let me know what you thought, I really love reading all of your reviews. Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far, I really appreciate it :)


	14. Plan Of Action

A/N: I'm so sorry for the amount of time it's taken for me update. This was through no fault of my own. My internet stopped working completely and I had to send off for my MAC code so that I could change providers (it had been one thing after another with them and I finally had enough!) then wait for my new wireless hub and everything to arrive. I did try and upload it at my local library but they wouldn't let me in case I had a virus or something *sigh* But anyway, I'm back online now with a much faster connection speed than I had before so it's all good. Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it :)

* * *

The narrow passageways were dark and gloomy, the odd torch doing little to penetrate the darkness. A lone sentry guard stood outside the entrance to a cavern, a spear-like weapon clutched in his hand. He straightened up as he saw a figure approaching. "Who goes there?"

A hand shot out of the darkness and clamped over the guard's mouth. "How dare you question me!" A voice hissed, "Don't you know who I am?"

The hand was removed and the guard nodded quickly, "Of course, I'm sorry. I didn't recognise you." He struggled to place a name to the face, not daring to question him.

"Zoltar sent me to deal with the witches. Where are they?"

The guard frowned, "Which one? They were split up."

The stranger paused for a split second, "The middle sister."

"Are you going to finish her off? It makes no sense keeping her around. We don't need her now do we?"

"Just answer the question!" The man snapped, "Where is she?"

Sullenly, the guard extended his arm and pointed to the passageway to their left, "Down there. Third cavern to the right."

"Thank you," The man said quietly. A swift movement of his left arm was all the guard saw before flames engulfed him. He cast a horrified look into the dark eyes of the man stood in front of him before the pieces clicked into place. The last thought to cross his mind before he exploded into nothing was that he was glad it was this person who had killed him and not Zoltar.

The man cast a quick glance down at the scorch mark which was all that was left of the guard before turning and walking briskly down passageway towards the place where Phoebe was.

* * *

Paige could feel her strength returning to her with every step. She still felt tired, cold and shaky but she no longer felt like she was going to pass out. They'd been trudging along in silence for the past few minutes although Paige could feel Piper's eyes on her every now and again.

Deep in thought and not paying much attention to her surroundings, Paige stumbled on some loose gravel. She nearly fell flat on her face but Piper reached out quickly and grabbed her arm, steadying her.

"Thanks…" Paige mumbled, brushing herself off.

"You don't need to sound so surprised," Piper grumbled as she surveyed their surroundings.

Paige glanced at her and felt bad when she saw a slightly hurt expression on her face, "I'm sorry. It's just…" She shrugged not knowing what to say.

"It's okay. It's my own fault. I've brought it on myself." Piper turned so that she was facing Paige, "It's the same reason you sounded so confused when you woke up earlier. I haven't exactly been acting very sisterly since you moved in have I?"

Paige shrugged again feeling that silence was easier than words.

"I don't hate you, Paige. I never have. That day that you and Phoebe walked in on me speaking to Leo… Well, it wasn't what it sounded like."

"It's okay…" Paige mumbled, "We should probably keep moving."

"No." Piper took Paige by the arm gently and held her back, "I have to tell you this now. Before we go any further. The reason I've been so off with you… Why I've made you feel so unwelcome… It's not because I don't like you. And it's not because I think you're replacing Prue in any way. In fact it's not for any of the reasons you've been thinking."

Paige frowned, "Then why?"

"I was stupid. I didn't think it was fair for you to be dragged in to all this witch craft stuff. I didn't think it was fair for you to have to risk your life the way we do. I was scared that you'd end up where Prue is now. And I couldn't face losing another sister."

Paige shook her head, her eyes starting to well up, "That doesn't explain why you treated me like crap. All my life I wondered who I was, where I came from… Why my parents gave me up… If I had any brothers or sisters. And then when I finally find you and Phoebe I'm made to feel like an outcast. I haven't felt as low as I have these past couple of weeks since my parents died. It was like I was losing my family all over again." Paige turned and walked away a couple of steps trying to compose herself. She heard quiet sniffing and guessed that Piper was doing the same. She turned back to face her when she heard her starting to speak again.

"I had this stupid idea in my head that if I pushed you away and didn't get close to you then it wouldn't hurt so much if anything happened," Piper stepped closer to her sister, her eyes matching the redness of Paige's', "I was stupid. I didn't realise that by doing that all I was doing was causing more hurt for you. I didn't stop to take your feelings into consideration."

Paige remained silent, unsure how to respond.

"It didn't work anyway. The harder I tried to push you away, the more I felt towards you. Because we're sisters. And nothing trumps that. It doesn't matter how much I tried to deny it. I love you. And if you could find it in your heart to give me another chance, I swear I'll be the best sister ever."

Piper stopped speaking and stood in front in front of Paige waiting for her to say something. Anything. When no answer came, Piper closed her eyes and allowed her tears to fall. She felt a pair of arms wrap softly round her body and she opened her eyes to see Paige gently holding her. She let out a sound that sounded like a cross between a sob and a laugh and brought her arms up to hold onto Paige.

"I'm so sorry…"

Paige squeezed her gently, "It's okay. I forgive you."

A sound echoed up the tunnel interrupting the moment and the pair sprang apart quickly, both trying to see further into the gloom.

Paige squinted in the dim light, unable to see anything, "Do you think it's him?"

"I don't know…" Piper answered cautiously, she stepped round Paige, "I'm going to go take a look. You wait here."

"No way!" Paige grabbed hold of Piper's shoulder and held her back, "I'm not letting you go on your own."

"It's okay. I'll be right back."

"No! What if you're caught?"

"Better me than you!" They both stood still for a moment, glaring at each other stubbornly. Another noise made them both turn quickly again. They could just make out the faint outline of a figure up ahead. The low lighting made it difficult to see but they both had a pretty good idea of who it was. Piper stood in front of Paige and held out an arm to keep her back, "Stay behind me…"

This time Paige didn't argue and she stepped back slightly. Piper raised her hands in a defensive gesture, ready to use her power if she had to. She raised her voice angrily, "We know you're there! Get your ass out here you son of a bitch!"

The figure moved closer and they could hear his footsteps approaching them slowly. Paige held onto Piper's shoulder, needing the contact.

Piper raised her voice again, "Get out here you bastard! Before I blow your ass into the wasteland!"

The figure sped up slightly until finally the light from one of the torches was thrown over him. He smirked at the pair of them, "That's not very nice…"

Paige let out an audible breath, "Cole! What are you doing down here?"

"I came to help. And it looks like not a moment too soon." He looked her up and down, "You look awful."

"Gee, thanks." Paige touched her face self consciously, she's managed to get most of the dried blood off but there was still some crusted around her nose. And her lips were swollen and split from where Zoltar had booted her. She knew she was limping and she could feel bruising starting to appear around her ribs and in patches on her face.

Piper nudged her gently, "You know what he means." She turned back to Cole, "She's fine. You should have seen her an hour ago. Have you seen Phoebe anywhere?"

"Yeah. She's back there in another cavern. I can't get to her. That's why I came looking for the two of you."

Piper looked anxious, "What do you mean you can't get to her?"

* * *

"What do you mean they're gone?!" Zoltar roared, sending a blast of energy from his hand into the wall above the minion's head and causing a cascade of rubble and dust showering down on him.

"I'm sorry my Lord, I checked in on them just now but the cave is empty."

Zoltar turned away angrily, "The beating I gave her should have kept her unconscious for at least another hour… That's the second time I've underestimated her. It won't happen again." He turned back to face the minion, "If they're roaming free in the underworld then they've obviously gone to look for their other sister. Gather the others and get down there before they do. If they free her then they'll have the Power of Three on their side."

The minion bowed low, "As you wish." He straightened up and shimmered from the cave.

* * *

"Where is she, Cole?" Piper asked.

The three of them were now stood in the cave where, according to Cole, Phoebe had been less than ten minute ago. Now, all that could be seen was a strange looking type of cage. It was long but very low to the ground.

Cole pointed at it, "She was under there. It zapped me when I got too close though and I didn't want to risk throwing an energy ball at it in case it hurt her."

"Did she say anything?" Paige asked.

"She'd have had a job, she was unconscious. She was in a bad way too, I don't know what he'd done to her but she looked quite badly injured. I did call to her a few times but she didn't stir."

Piper ran a hand through her hair and slowly exited the cave, Cole and Paige following close behind her. She stood still for a moment trying to figure out what to do. Hearing a slight noise behind her, she turned and saw Paige sliding down the wall into a sitting position, "Are you okay?"

Paige nodded wearily, "I'll be fine. I just need to rest a moment."

"Our best bet is to try and find Zoltar. We need to get the athame back anyway."

"No," Piper shook her head, "You should take Paige back to the manor and…"

"What?!" Paige interrupted, "I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you!"

"Paige, you can barely stand, let alone walk any further. If Cole takes you back then Leo can heal you. Then you can bless another athame and bring it back here. We'll be better prepared then. Otherwise we're going to have to try and get the athame away from him before we can even attempt to vanquish him."

Paige opened her mouth to argue some more but Cole cut her off, "Piper's right. It's be better all round if you were back to 100%. You're tired now, you won't last long in a fight."

"Fine…" Paige turned to Piper, "But you be careful, don't try anything too heroic until I'm back."

"I promise," Piper said, giving her a hug, "Don't be to long."

Paige smiled at her then held onto Cole's hand. The two of them shimmered out of the underworld.

* * *

Leo looked up sharply as Cole and Paige appeared in the middle of the living room. As Cole let go of Paige's hand she sank to the floor with her head in her arms. Leo rushed over to her, "Paige! Are you okay? Where's Phoebe and Piper?"

"How about you heal her first and ask questions later…" Cole suggested, "I'm going to get everything from the attic." He disappeared up the stairs.

Leo held his hands out over Paige and a golden glow appeared. Within seconds her injuries had vanished.

Paige took a deep breath, she could feel her strength returning to her instantly and got to her feet, "Thanks Leo."

"Piper and Phoebe?"

"They're okay… Well… Phoebe's less okay but she will be once I get back with another blessed athame." Leo looked at her questioningly and she gestured for him to follow her as she went through to the kitchen, "Zoltar attacked me and took the athame with him then Piper and I set off to look for Phoebe and ran into Cole who already had but when he led us back to the cave where he'd found her she was gone so we're guessing she's with Zoltar now." Paige gulped in air as she finished gabbling out what had happened to Leo.

Leo looked unsure of what to say, "Oh…" He frowned, "So where's Piper now?"

"She's gone to look for Phoebe. I've got to bless another athame and meet her back down there." She pulled the Book towards her, which was still conveniently on the side, and flipped to the right page.

Cole shimmered into the kitchen next to her and lay the ingredients out on the side before pulling an impressive looking athame from his belt and placing it carefully down on the counter. The hilt was encrusted with jewels and the blade was curved at the top, ending in a viscous looking point.

"Right," Said Paige, "Let's get cooking…"

* * *

Piper walked cautiously down the passageway. The path was sloping steeply downwards leading her deeper into the underworld. She was having a little trouble keeping her balance as there was a lot of loose gravel on the ground which kept sliding out from under her feet.

Paige and Cole had been gone for nearly twenty minutes now. It wasn't a huge amount of time but the longer they were apart the more danger Piper knew she could be in. Not to mention Phoebe.

"Where are you?" She whispered. Her concerns over the sister she hadn't seen for many hours now since they'd been separated were growing, making her feel like there was a tight band round her chest.

Taking another tentative step forward, Piper was unpleasantly surprised when her foot went out from under her sending a heap of loose rubble thundering down the passageway. She landed heavily on her back and fought desperately to regain her footing as she slid down the slope on a river of dust and stone.

She skidded to a stop at the bottom and rolled painfully onto her side. Her back and arms were scraped and bleeding. She pushed herself into a kneeling position and got carefully to her feet, brushing the dirt from her jeans. She pressed her hand to the back of her head and was alarmed to see blood on her palm. She probed the cut with her fingers, wincing, but soon established that it was just a graze and wasn't deep.

Piper glanced around at her surroundings and saw that she was in a large cavern, much larger than any of the ones she'd seen before. A stone table stood at one end with a throne like seat behind it and in the middle of the room stood a stone urn which was emitting wafts of green smoke. Other than that the room was empty. Four wooden doors were set into the wall on the far side, each looking very familiar to the door she and Phoebe had been imprisoned behind earlier that day. Except that there were no guards to be seen.

She took a couple of steps towards the doors and then sped up until she was running. She peered through the bars of the first one to see the same tiny room they'd been confined in earlier. The only difference being a few handfuls of straw had been thrown in, presumably to soak up any blood spilt. She moved onto to the next door, and then the next. Both were as empty as the first.

She reached the last door and glanced through the barred window with bated breath. There, lying in a crumpled heap on the floor, was her sister. She'd found her. She was alive, unconscious maybe, but alive. Piper released the breath she'd been holding and tugged on the door handle but, as she'd expected, it didn't budge. She knew from previous experience that her power didn't work on the doors but never the less she raised her hands and delivered a blast of explosive power at it. She jumped in shock and amazement when the door blew to pieces. Guessing that it must only block powers from the inside, she sprang into action.

Rushing forward, she dropped to her knees at Phoebe's side and pulled her towards her so that she was lying in Piper's lap. She ran a hand through her sister's tangled hair, "Phoebs…? Can you hear me, sweetie?"

She glanced down and saw the mess she was in. Her clothes were torn and stained with blood, her leg which had looked bad last time Piper had seen her now looked ten times worse. Her nose was obviously broken, dried blood formed around her mouth and was matted into her hair. Thin streaks ran down her face where tears had cut through the grime and blood.

"Oh Phoebe… What has he done to you?" Piper asked softly. She reached for her sister's hand, intending to hold it and offer some form of comfort but was horrified to see that the fingers on Phoebe's right hand were broken and, from the look of it, her wrist too. "Come on… I'm getting you out of here…" Piper wriggled out from under Phoebe and hooked her hands under her sister's arms, lifting her from the ground. She tried to ignore the way Phoebe's head lolled back, making her look dead.

She took a couple of slow steps backwards, dragging Phoebe as carefully as she could, not wanting to inflict anymore damage to her broken body.

The slope. Piper stopped in her tracks. The slope had been steep, hell, it had sent her tumbling down. She wasn't sure she'd be able to get back up it on her own, let alone with Phoebe's unconscious form with her. She lowered Phoebe back to the ground gently and straightened up, running a hand over her face tiredly. She turned to see if there was any other way out of the cavern and shrieked in surprise when she saw Zoltar stood nearby, watching her with an amused expression on his face. Four demons stood behind him, each brandishing a fireball.

"Take the unconscious one back to her cell," He instructed the demons. He glanced over Piper's shoulder, "You broke my door."

"Happy to be a pain in the ass…" Piper muttered bitterly.

"Take her through to cell one instead." Two of the demons nodded and stepped forward to retrieve Phoebe but Piper threw out her hands and blew them up.

"You're not touching her again. I won't let you."

Zoltar smirked, "Oh yeah?" He pointed his hand towards her and once again Piper was greeted by a blinding pain through her head. It felt like there were a thousand white hot needles penetrating her skull. Her legs gave out from under her as the pain intensified and nausea bubbled up from her stomach causing her to be sick onto the cave floor. Then as suddenly as it had appeared it was gone. Piper sat back shakily and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"You really like that little party trick of yours, don't you?" She said through gritted teeth as she willed the room to stop spinning. She glanced back to where Phoebe had been lying and was dismayed to see she was gone. She snapped her gaze to the left and saw the two demons throw Phoebe roughly into one of the other cells. The door was slammed and the demons stood either side of it, guarding it.

Piper hung her head. She was tired. She hurt. And she was rapidly giving up hope that they'd ever make it out of here alive. She raised her head again in time to see Zoltar swinging a cosh type object towards her.

"Oh crap…" She muttered just before the object made contact with the side of her skull. She saw stars and then everything went black.

* * *

A/N: I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. If there were any mistakes or anything then I apologise but I have to admit that I never had a chance to read this through properly. As always, please leave a review (even if you hated it), every review I recieve gives me the motivation to write the next chapter. Until next time!


	15. Blood, Sweat and Tears

A/N: Guess what? My computer's fixed! Woo! I had my new hard drive fitted yesterday (also had a call from the tech to say that unfortunately my old hard drive was too badly damaged to salvage anything) and I wrote this chapter today. I only read it through the once so I'm not entirely sure about it but it's the best I could do in a short space of time. I hope you enjoy it. Sorry for the delay!

* * *

Phoebe half opened one of her eyes as she felt consciousness slowly returning to her.

_No.. Let me stay asleep... Please..._

Her wishes went unanswered though as a small jolt to her body awakened her all the more. She was moving. That much she knew. Who was moving her and where she was going remained to be seen. She cracked her eyelid open a little more, her other eye crusted shut with dry blood, in time to see Piper get hit round the face by Zoltar before whoever was dragging her rounded a corner into a small cell and she was dropped like a sack of potatoes onto the hard surface. She was too weak to cry out. The sound of a door slamming alerted her to the fact that she was now shut in somewhere. She didn't care anymore. She'd never known pain like the pain she was feeling now and she could barely summon the energy to roll over. She managed it somehow and ended up lying on her side, her face pressed into the dirt.

She closed her eye again, ready to slip back into unconsciousness when her brain caught up with what she'd just witnessed. Zoltar hitting her sister. Her sister. Piper... She was alive! With a tremendous effort she managed to haul herself into an awkward sitting position and propped herself up against the wall, her breathing ragged with exhaustion. Had she really seen what she was sure she'd just seen? Or had she merely been hallucinating from the pain? She didn't know for sure but if there was even a remote chance of one or both of her sisters being alive then she was going to do everything in her power to get out of here... which wasn't a great deal at the moment.

She looked across the cell to the door opposite her. There were thick set bars near the top of it. If she could get there she could... well, she wasn't sure what she could do but it was better than just sitting there. With her goal in mind, she allowed herself to tip forward until she fell onto her hands and then attempted to crawl towards the door. Her bad leg gave out from under her making her crash to the ground in agony. Determined not to give up, she reached one hand forward and began a painfully slow journey towards the door on her stomach.

* * *

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" Piper muttered to herself, gingerly feeling her cheekbone to see if it was broken. She'd only been knocked unconscious for a couple of minutes when Zoltar had whacked her but it had been long enough for the guards to imprison her in another one of the damn cells. She winced as she felt one of her top teeth shift slightly. Great. She ran her tongue over it, tasting blood, and spat onto the dirt floor. Where the hell had Paige got to? She should have been here by now! She sighed heavily. Unless Paige had been captured too. In which case they were all screwed.

She wandered over to the cell door and peered through them. Zoltar was stood at the stone urn, staring intently into it as if watching something inside. She squinted to the left, trying to see past the thick wedge of door down to Phoebe's cell. She could just about make out one of the guards stationed outside, two doors down. Knowing that it wouldn't work but deciding to try anyway, Piper stepped back and threw her hands out in an attempt to blow up the door. Instead, the blast rebounded and hit her full force, sending her crashing back into the wall.

Wincing, she got to her feet and brushed herself down. It looked like she'd have to wait for rescue. If there was any rescue coming.

* * *

Leo and Cole stood on one side of the kitchen counter, watching Paige work. She slid a blade across her finger with an exaggerated 'ouch!' and squeezed a couple of drops of her blood into the pot. A large bang signalled the potion's success. Paige held up the newly blessed dagger and smiled as it glinted back at her. She nodded in satisfaction and tucked it into the waistband of her jeans, "I'm ready."

Cole stepped forward, "I'm going with you. For back up." He turned to Leo. "Why don't you sit down and meditate? Or do something equally useless?"

Paige rolled her eyes, Leo and Cole had been bitching at each other constantly ever since she'd come back from the underworld, "Will you two knock it off! This isn't helping!"

"Sorry..." Cole muttered before turning back to Leo, "Well, I guess we'll see you later."

Leo ignored him and looked at Paige, "I'm coming too."

"But what about the Elders?"

"One of my charges needs healing," he answered simply, referring to the fact that Phoebe was apparently in a bad way, "Not even the Elders can stop me from going to do that."

Paige nodded, "Right." She took a deep breath, "Off we go then."

Leo took hold of her hand and they both orbed out, leaving Cole to shimmer after them.

The three of them materialised in a large cavern deep in the underworld. Paige blinked a few times, letting her eyes get accustomed to the gloom.

"Does this look familiar?" Leo asked, looking around.

Paige nodded, "This was where I found Piper." She pointed to the far corner of the cave, "And that's where I was sick."

"Nice..." Cole muttered. "So that means that the passageway just up there is where we ran into each other." He started walking towards it, Leo and Paige following closely behind. He paused after about ten minutes of walking and signalled to a turn off on the left, "And that's where Phoebe was being held." He peered further up the passage which seemed to veer off to the right slightly, making it impossible for them to see all the way. He pointed, "So Piper must have gone up there."

Paige nodded in agreement and pushed ahead of him. She followed the passageway round but stopped abruptly a little while later when the passage split into two. "Which way do we go?"

"We'll have to split up. One of us go with you and the other go off on his own. I think Leo should go and I'll stay with you."

"What? Why?" Leo demanded, rounding on him.

"Because," said Cole, speaking as if he were explaining things to a three year old, "Short of a Darklighter's arrow, you can self heal so you can take care of yourself. I have more experiance of the underworld, plus I have defensive powers. Paige would be better protected with me."

"Yeah, sure. Because you can heal people. What are you going to do if she gets hurt?"

"I won't let that happen," Cole replied impatiently.

"You can't guarantee that!" argued Leo.

"Well, then I'll call you if I need you!"

"Then wouldn't it make more sense for me to stay with Paige so that you can save your voice?"

"Why don't we just let Paige decide seeing as you're too stubborn to see what the best choice is."

"Fine. But you're the one being stubborn." Leo turned to speak to Paige but was dismayed to see that she was gone. "Great!" He snapped. "Now look what you've done!"

* * *

Phoebe reached one hand shakily up and managed to grab hold of one of the bars on the door. Summoning every last ounce of strength she had, she pulled herself into a standing position, her bad leg hanging limply to the side and all her weight contributed to her good leg. Panting from the effort and the pain, she rested her head against the bars. "Piper..." Her voice was no more than a whisper but the demon guards at her door heard her.

One of them seized hold of her hand and attempted to prise her fingers away from the bars but Phoebe clung on desperately. "Piper!" She managed to call a bit louder this time. A scuffling sound could be heard from somewhere to the right and then suddenly Phoebe heard a sound that she thought she'd never hear again, Piper's voice. She was calling to her, asking her if she was ok.

Phoebe opened her mouth to reply but at that moment the guard managed to bend her fingers back and she lost her balance, falling backwards until her back hit the floor, knocking all the breath out of her. She could still hear Piper's voice but it was growing fainter as she once again descended into darkness.

* * *

Paige crept cautiously down the narrow passageway, one hand pressed against the wall for balance. What had once begun as a gentle downward slope had suddenly turned into a steep incline that was threatening to knock her feet out from under her. She paused suddenly as she heard a noise in the distance, frowning as she tried to make out what it was.

"Phoebe..."

It was Piper's voice! Very faint but it was there which meant she was going the right way. She glanced back behind her, wondering whether she should go back for the men but decided they were probably still squabbling with each other. She took another careful step forwards, grabbing hold of the wall as one foot slid out from under her. She steadied herself and double checked to make sure that the athame was still tucked safely in the back of her jeans. It was.

"Into battle we go..." She muttered to herself as she took another step.

* * *

"Let. Me. Out. Of. Here." Piper shouted, kicking the door with each word uttered. She threw her entire weight at it, the wood making a satisfying rattle. "I want to see my sister!" She threw herself at the door again. "What have you done to her!" Once again she smashed all of her weight into the wood.

The door opened so suddenly that it took Piper a moment to register. She looked up at Zoltar, noting with annoyance his usual amused expression.

"Is there a problem?"

"Damn right there's a problem!" She snapped. "You're going to let Phoebe go. Let me go. And then burn in hell for all eternity."

He laughed, "Am I now? And how do you propose to make that happen? You are a prisoner, powerless to do anything. The middle sister has been beaten to a pulp and is currently unconscious in another cell - so you can stop calling her by the way- and the youngest is on her way to me to join me and embrace a life of evil."

"Now, see, you've got that all wrong," Piper said mockingly, "For one thing Paige will never turn evil. She proved that much earlier. And she's on her way here to vanquish your sorry ass. And yes, Phoebe may be unconscious but I'm far from powerless." To prove her point, Piper blasted at the ceiling above his head causing a shower of rubble to rain down on him.

Zoltar brushed himself off and leant forward so that they were almost nose-to-nose, "Do you really want me to go in there and finish your sister off once and for all?"

Instead of answering, Piper lashed out viciously with her hand. He reeled back from her in shock and clutched at his face. When he moved his hand away, she was satisfied to see a large, deep scratch mark under his left eye.

"That looks like it stings..."

Before Piper had chance to react, he seized her by the throat and slammed her against the wall. "You're really starting to annoy me," he hissed angrily, his earlier cocky attitude now replaced with anger.

"Glad to hear it," replied Piper through gritted teeth.

"Paige is already on her way down here. I don't need you anymore." He conjured an athame in his hand, "I don't know why I've kept you around this long." With that he slammed the blade deep into her stomach. Piper let out a strangled cry and scrunched her eyes up tightly. Zoltar released his grip on her and watched as she dropped to the ground. He kicked her viciously in the side as she lay by his feet, relishing the shout of pain as his boot made contact with her ribs. He crouched down next to her, "Don't start what you can't finish."

"Just let Phoebe go.." Piper choked out, her hands desperately trying to stop the flow of blood that oozed from her wound. "She's suffered enough..."

"And thanks to your insolence she's going to suffer just that much more before I finally let her die. So you can have that on your conscience." He straightened up, "In fact, once I've turned Paige, maybe I'll give her the pleasure of finishing Phoebe off herself."

Piper shook her head stubbornly, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes, "She'd never hurt her. You won't turn Paige evil. She's one of the best people I know..." She stopped speaking abruptly as a ripple of pain passed through her body making her whimper.

"We'll see." Zoltar stood and walked away from Piper. He slammed the cell door shut behind him and looked back through the bars, smiling in sadistic pleasure as he saw her writhe in pain."We'll see..."

* * *

A/N: Well there you go. It's not a very long chapter and it's certainly not my best work but like I said it's the best I could do in the time I did it. I hope you enjoyed it despite what I think. Please leave me lots of reviews, I've missed them! Until next time... x

* * *


	16. Into The Lion's Den

A/N: Well, I've been hard at work, rewriting a lot of my lost work. I swear, other than to get food and go to the toilet, I haven't left this computer in over six hours!! I've just finished writing this chapter (I wrote other stuff besides this in the six hours lol) and was going to wait a couple of days before I posted it but I've missed reading reviews so I thought I'd just putit on now instead. I hope you enjoy it, please leave me a review and let me know what you think.

* * *

Leo walked down the increasingly narrow passageway, the walls now brushing the sleeves of his jacket on both sides. He had a horrible feeling that this was the wrong way. For one thing, Paige would surely have turned back by now. She was claustrophobic and wouldn't have been able to handle the narrow space. But then, he thought, he didn't know what lengths she would go to save her sisters. He knew that Piper and Phoebe would go to the ends of the earth for each other and he hoped that, even though the three of them hadn't known each other that long, they felt the same about Paige, and vice versa.

He bumped his head as the ceiling suddenly dipped further, making him swear loudly, and then chide himself for not paying attention. He ducked down as he continued to walk but when the ceiling dropped down lower meaning he'd have to crawl he knew there was no point going any further.

He turned around and began heading back the way he'd come when suddenly a gut-wrenching pain ripped through his abdomen, forcing him to his knees. He clutched his stomach and gasped for breath as the pain intensified… Only it wasn't his pain he was feeling. Tears pooled in his eyes as the pain lessened slightly but didn't go away completely. "Piper…" he gasped, before staggering to his feet and moving as fast as his body would let him, back up the passageway.

* * *

Cole jogged down the gently sloping path, determined that if this was the way Paige had gone then he would catch her up as quickly as possible. Turning the corner, his words took an ironical twist as the ground suddenly dropped into a much steeper decline, the loose gravel on the floor sliding his feet out from under him and sending him into a downwards tumble.

He rolled for what seemed like an eternity until he hit something both solid and soft at the same time, before he could think about what it was, something landed on top of him, knocking the wind out of him.

"Cole!" Paige's voice sounded as she struggled to get up from where she'd been knocked down. "What the hell are you doing?" He tried to answer but could only gasp in pain. Paige tried to keep a straight face but his fish-out-of-water expression was just too comical and she burst into laughter before offering him her hand and helping him to his feet.

He looked at her grumpily as he was finally able to breathe again, "That's what I get for coming to help you? Don't I get just a little bit of sympathy."

Paige shrugged, "Toughen up a little. We're probably going to be more hurt than this by the time the day's over." She motioned for him to get moving and then turned and continued down the passage.

He pulled a face as he followed her down the passageway, "Great…"

* * *

Zoltar marched towards Phoebe's cell. He pointed at one of the guards, "Open it!" The guard hurried to do as he was told but apparently not fast enough as Zoltar vanquished both him and the other guard with a fireball. Turning the key, Zoltar threw open the door and glared at the unconscious witch lying on the floor. Seizing her by the hair, he dragged her out into the main cavern. He threw her to the ground and kicked her savagely in the ribs sending her skidding across the cave floor.

She coughed painfully, semi aware of what was going on. Blood dribbled from her mouth and down her neck. He marched over to her again and once more picked her up by the hair.

"Put her down!" Zoltar looked up and saw Cole and Paige stood across the cavern from him, Cole's face contorted with fury at what he'd just witnessed.

Zoltar smiled at Paige, "I see you've finally decided to join me. I thought you'd never get here."

"I said, put her down!" Cole roared. As Zoltar raised her higher in an act of pure defiance, Cole stepped towards him, his fists clenched.

Paige grabbed his arm to stop him, "Cole, no! This is my fight."

Cole didn't answer her but he stopped in his tracks, his eyes narrowed at the demon he was facing.

Paige walked towards Zoltar, glancing back a couple of times to make sure Cole stayed where he was. She stopped when she reached him, "Put her down."

Zoltar eyed her thoughtfully for a moment and then nodded his head, almost in a bow. "As you wish." He lowered Phoebe to the floor. Straightening up, he smiled slightly at Paige, "You know I only want the best for you." He waited for a response but when he got none he continued, "Do you remember the night we met in your sister's club? We clicked didn't we? I know you felt it too. Surely you know that I would treat you better… Respect you more than these witches do?"

"I don't know," said Paige quietly. "The last time we came face to face you hurt me pretty badly."

"An act of self defense, I assure you. If memory serves, you did try to stab me."

Paige nodded, "That's right, I did."

He reached out and touched her arm, "I know it was a shock for you. Seeing me for who I am. I'm sorry I wasn't honest with you to start with, I should have been."

"I understand."

"What are you doing?" Cole shouted. "Vanquish him!"

Paige spun to look at him, "Stay out this, Cole. This is between him and me." Cole was about to argue some more when she winked at him. His eyes softened slightly as if in understanding. She hoped he understood anyway. She turned back to Zoltar, "Let my sisters go."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. They deserve punishment for how they've treated you."

"They've been punished enough," Paige said softly. "Let them go, and I'll stay here. With you."

A glint in his eye told her that she had his attention. She kept eye contact until finally he smiled, "We need to discuss this further. In private."

"Of course." She glanced back at Cole who was watching her carefully. Turning to Zoltar she said, "He's not to be harmed."

"He can remain in this cavern while we discuss things. You understand of course that he cannot be left unaccompanied." He clicked his fingers and six of his minions shimmered in behind him. Without looking at them, Zoltar told them his commands. "Stay here. Watch him. See that he doesn't get up to anything."

With that he turned and gestured for Paige to walk ahead of him. They left the cavern and went through one of the doors that Paige had assumed was a cell but was in fact another narrow passageway. They walked down it in silence for a couple of minutes until it opened out into a small chamber.

It was the homiest cavern Paige has ever seen. A table and chairs were set in the corner, complete with plates and cutlery. A desk sat at the wall opposite, a large stone chair behind it and a smaller one in front. An alcove had been cut into the rock, a large cupboard set into it and a double bed lay to her right.

Without saying anything, he turned to her and wrapped his arms around her in what seemed to be a hug. Too surprised to say or do anything, she merely stood there until he stepped back. It took her a moment to realize he had the blessed athame in his hand. She looked up at him, unsure what to say.

"You seem to have trouble holding on to these," he said with a smile.

"Well… A girl can't be too careful these days," Paige said quickly. "I wasn't sure if I was going to be attacked again."

"Likewise," he replied with a smile, much to Paige's relief. He tossed the athame across the room, where it slid under the cupboard. He motioned for her to sit in the small chair in front of the desk. She did so and then watched as he sat across from her and leant his elbows on the wooden surface. "Now, where to start…"

* * *

Cole eyed the six demons who stood opposite him in a semi circle. As soon as Zoltar and Paige had left the cavern the demons had edged nearer to Cole. They each had a fireball brandished and were watching him warily.

The sound of footsteps and shifting stones echoed loudly down the sloping passage and Cole looked round to see Leo run out and skid to a stop when he saw the demons. Cole was more than a little satisfied to see dirt and dust covering Leo's clothing. "I see I'm not the only one who was knocked on my ass," he called over to him.

Leo walked briskly over to Cole, eyeing the demons as he did so. None of them attacked but they held their fireballs at the ready in case either of them made any sudden moves. Leo grabbed Cole by the arm, "Where's Paige?"

Cole shrugged, "Speaking with the enemy. They went off that way. She told me to wait here. I don't know what her plan is though."

"Piper's hurt. Bad."

"Phoebe's in pretty bad shape too in case you hadn't noticed."

Leo glanced over to the blood soaked figure lying a few feet in front of them. He jogged towards her in a bid to heal her but one of the demons threw a fireball at him, blasting him into a thousand orbs.

Cole frowned, "A little trigger happy aren't you?"

The demon glared at Cole, "You killed my brother."

"I did?" Cole looked puzzled but then smiled, "Oh, you mean the demon who was patrolling the passages earlier? He was your brother? Shame. Does stupidity run in the family?"

Before the demon could answer, he erupted into flames and exploded into nothing, revealing Leo stood behind him brandishing one of the decorative swords that hung from the walls.

Cole sighed, "Apparently so. " He reached out his hand and caught the handle of another sword that Leo tossed over to him. He looked at it blankly and then looked over to Leo. "What do I need this for?" He threw two energy balls simultaneously and vanquished two of the demons, "I've already got fire power."

Leo rolled his eyes and swung his sword at the nearest demon. The demon managed to dodge it and conjured a sword of his own. The two began to dual, clashing swords back and forth.

Cole stifled a laugh and dodged to the left as a fireball narrowly missed him. He threw one back in retaliation and smirked as it met it's mark. A yell from his right told him that Leo had successfully vanquished the other demon. The only remaining one began to shimmer out but Cole grabbed him by the throat before he had chance.

Leo let Cole deal with him while he rushed to Phoebe's side to begin healing her.

Cole leaned in close to the demon, "You'll tell me where the oldest sister is or I swear to you that I'll make you suffer ten times more than either of the sisters have."

"He'll kill me if I tell you…"

"And I'll kill you if you don't. Pick your poison."

The demon pointed a shaky hand towards the middle door set into the cave wall. "She's in there."

"Thanks." Cole let go of him and stepped back, throwing an energy ball at him and killing him before he had a chance to escape. He looked over to Leo who was still healing Phoebe, "What's taking so long?"

"There's a lot to heal…" Leo glanced up at him, "Go get Piper."

Cole nodded once and jogged over to the door.

* * *

Zoltar leapt to his feet as the sounds of battle echoed down the passage outside the chamber. "What's going on?" he snapped, striding towards the door.

Paige got up quickly and grabbed his arm as he went to leave, "Where are you going?"

"To kill that pathetic excuse for a demon," he said, referring to Cole.

"Why bother?" Paige asked with a smile. "I'm sure your minions can take care of him. Stay here with me."

"Much as I'd like to. I can't risk him freeing the witches."

"Why not?" Paige asked, "You were going to let them go anyway."

"I hadn't agreed to that yet. I thought I'd let you convince me a little more."

Paige smiled at him and rested her hands on his shoulders. "Then let me convince you…" she said softly as she leaned in close and pressed her lips to his.

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A?N: Reviews please!


	17. Confrontation Time

A/N: I know, I know! I'm sorry! It's been forever since I last updated and I give you full permission to yell at me! I have no excuse… except to offer a very feeble sounding – writer's block…?

Anyway, here it is! The long awaited update, the next chapter, the golden chalice of story writing… You get the picture.

This chapter is dedicated to impeccableblahs for her review, it gave me the kick up the backside that I needed to get on with it. Enjoy!

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Piper's eyes fluttered open as she felt a warming sensation flood through her abdomen. She gazed up to see the wonderful sight of her husband's face above her. "Leo…?" She frowned and blinked a couple of times as the pain in her stomach vanished completely. "Am I dead?"

Leo smiled at her, "Like I'd let that happen." He got to his feet and offered her his hand, helping her to stand.

"About time you were awake."

Piper turned to see Phoebe smiling at her. "Phoebe! Oh, thank God you're alright." She ran to her and wrapped her arms round her, pulling her into a hug. "I was so worried. I thought I'd lost you."

"He told me that you and Paige were dead," Phoebe whispered, squeezing Piper just as hard. "I don't know what I'd have done if that were true. I couldn't survive without you."

"I don't mean to break this up," said Cole, "But there's still one more Charmed One to save."

Piper looked around the cave, noticing for the first time that Paige wasn't there, "Where is she?"

"She went off with Zoltar. She's been keeping him distracted while Leo and I saved you."

Phoebe frowned. "Distracting him how?"

* * *

Paige tried to suppress her disgust as she felt Zoltar deepen the kiss. When she'd followed him out of the cave, this had been the last thing on her mind. However, desperate times call for desperate measures.

She tried to calculate how long she'd been gone now. Had Cole managed to fight off those demons? And what about Leo? Where was he? Without him, Phoebe could die. Paige wasn't sure where Piper was but she had a horrible feeling that wherever she was, she was probably in need of healing too.

Zoltar pulled away suddenly, ripping Paige from her thoughts. His face had taken on a dark expression and he eyed her suspiciously. "Do you think I'm a fool?"

"Sorry?" Paige asked, confused.

"I can tell that your heart's not in it. I know that you're only doing this to try and save those pathetic sisters of yours." He walked away a few steps and stood with his back to her, "I don't understand why you want them alive. After they've treated you so badly."

"That's not true…" Paige insisted, "I just don't think they're worth the effort of killing. Let them go back to their lives and struggle on their own without the Power of Three." She stepped forward and placed her hand on his shoulder, "While we make a new life. Together."

Zoltar shook his head. He spun back round suddenly and knocked her to the ground with the back of his hand. "Liar!" he roared. As he swung his foot out to kick her, Paige orbed on the spot causing him to lose his balance and topple to the ground. As she reappeared she held out her hand and called for the athame. As soon as it materialized in her hand she turned and ran for the door, tucking the athame into the back of her jeans as she went..

Before she could get there she crashed back down to floor. Looking behind her she saw that Zoltar had hold of one of her ankles. She struggled with him and managed to kick him fairly hard in the face causing him to grunt in pain and loosen his hold on her. Kicking out at him again, she felt her foot connect with something but was too busy struggling to get away to see where she'd got him. His grip loosened even more and she was able to wrench herself free from his grasp.

She scrambled to her feet and threw herself at the door. Wrenching it open, she sprinted down the narrow passageway. It wasn't long until she saw the door leading back into the main cavern. She put on a burst of speed but was suddenly thrown towards the wall as an energy ball hit her in the side. She put out her hands to try and cushion the impact with the stone wall put instead felt and heard a sickening crack in her left wrist. Her left arm flooded with a white hot pain as she landed with a thump on her back, she glanced down at her wrist and nearly passed out when she saw the bone poking through the skin.

Seeing Zoltar advancing on her with another energy ball ignited in his hand, she pushed the pain from her mind and struggled to her feet again.

Zoltar's face was contorted with fury. "You won't leave this place alive! I'm too powerful for you!"

"Talk about psycho!" Paige gasped in pain, "First you love me then you want to kill me. Make your mind up!" She ducked as he threw the second energy ball at her. It hit the wall behind her and showered them both in dust. Straightening up, she only just had enough time to throw herself to the side as she saw another energy ball coming towards her.

She got to her feet surprisingly quickly and ran towards the door to the main cavern, keeping her left wrist pressed against her chest in an effort to protect it.

As she reached the door, it was suddenly flung open from the other side and she collided with someone, once again finding herself knocked to the ground.

"Paige!" Before she could register who it was, the person had grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her to her feet. "Come on, we're getting out of here."

Realizing that it was Piper who was pulling her along, Paige called out a warning about Zoltar but it was too late. A wave of kinetic energy hit them and sent them flying in different directions. Paige landed heavily and scrunched up her eyes in pain as her broken wrist made contact with the ground. She rolled onto her side in time to see Piper, Phoebe, Cole and Leo all struggling to their feet. The pain in her wrist intensified suddenly and her vision went blurry, she closed her eyes hoping that it would pass.

Zoltar was stood a few feet away from her, laughing. "So these are the mighty Charmed Ones?" He shook his head, "Even with two others helping you, you can't defeat me. You're pathetic."

"How's this for pathetic?" Piper asked before throwing her hands out and blasting him. Her power didn't have the desired affect though, it merely knocked him back a couple of steps.

He laughed again, "Haven't you realized it yet, witch? You can't hurt me with your magic. But I can hurt you with mine." He threw an energy ball towards her and Phoebe flinched as her sister only just managed to dodge it.

Leo held out his hand to Piper, "Let's get out of here."

Phoebe shook her head, "And have him attack us at home again when we least expect it. No way."

"Phoebe's right," Piper decided. "Our best chance of defeating him is down here."

Zoltar took a few steps towards them, stepping past Paige who was still lying on the ground. He ignited an energy ball in his hand, "Okay then, witches, what's your next move?"

Phoebe, who had been quiet up until this point stepped forward, "Simple. We vanquish you." She turned her head slightly towards Piper and hissed, "Where's the athame?"

"Ah, Phoebe… You weren't quite so cocky earlier when you thought your precious sisters were dead." He ignited another energy ball in his hand, "Perhaps you'd like to die first?"

"None of us are going to die today. Nobody except you."

Piper glanced over at Paige worriedly. She hadn't got up again after they were all knocked down, her eyes were still closed and she appeared to be out cold. As she went to look back Zoltar, a glint of light caught her eye and she turned back to Paige again. There it was! The athame! Sticking out the back of Paige's jeans. She felt Phoebe shift slightly next to her and saw Zoltar walking slowly towards them. The energy ball was gone now and instead he'd raised his hand towards them.

"I could always use my…" he glanced at Piper, "What was it you called it? Ah, yes… my 'little party trick' again." He smirked at Phoebe, "Your sister seems to enjoy it anyway."

Before Piper could think up a witty response, she saw Zoltar's hand twitch slightly and suddenly Phoebe was doubled over, her hands clutching at handfuls of her own hair as she screamed in pain.

"No! Stop it! Let her go you bastard!" Piper started towards him but he raised his other hand and threw her backwards with a blast of kinetic energy.

"You know, if I keep doing this long enough, she'll die. Not a nice way to go."

Leo quickly stepped forward and placed his hands over Phoebe's head, the familiar healing glow appeared as always. Zoltar laughed cruelly, "You think that will help, Whitelighter? You can't heal her unless I release my hold on her."

"No, but I can neutralize the pain you're inflicting and make it bearable for her."

Right on cue, Phoebe stopped screaming and straightened up again although Piper noticed she was still shaking slightly. She stepped a bit nearer to her sister and gently took her hand in hers, "Are you ok?"

Phoebe nodded, "Let's just kill him."

Cole nodded, "It's time to finish this." He let out a snarl and transformed into his demon alter ego, Belthazor. He half turned towards the two sisters, "Get the athame." Without another word, he lunged towards Zoltar in an attempt to knock him to the ground but the powerful demon sidestepped him easily and conjured a lethal looking sword in his hand. The two threw themselves towards each other in a deadly battle.

Piper ran over towards Paige, Phoebe and Leo close behind her. She crouched down next to her fallen sister and placed her hand on her face, "Her skin's like ice!"

Phoebe gestured wildly at Paige, "Leo, heal her already!"

Nodding distractedly, Leo held his hands over Paige until her wrist was healed and she began to stir.

Paige ran her hand over her face, "Whoa… head rush…"

"Are you okay?" Phoebe asked, sounding concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be even better when we vanquish that son-of-a-bitch…" She got to her feet her feet with the help of her sisters. "So… do we have a plan?"

An almighty roar from across the cavern made them all turn on the spot and stare in shock and horror at the scene before them. The battle was over between Belthazor and Zoltar. It was finished.

Belthazor fell back onto the hard ground, the sword protruding through his chest, Zoltar stood over him laughing, "Oh how the mighty have fallen! Even the famous Belthazor is no match for me!" As Belthazor gasped for breath, he transformed back into Cole.

"No…" Phoebe whispered. "It can't be…" Piper tried to put her arm around her but Phoebe broke free and ran to her boyfriend, dropping to her knees next to him and cradling his head in her lap. Zoltar made no move to stop her, seeming to enjoy Phoebe's grief.

"Cole?" Phoebe's voice broke slightly, "Can you hear me, baby?"

"Phoebe… " Cole's voice was barely more than a whisper. "I love you… You know that… Right?"

"Shh… it's going to be okay. We're going to get you out of here. I promise. Please don't give up. Hold on."

"How touching," Zoltar said snidely. "Sorry to break this short but it's your turn to die now." And for what seemed like the hundredth time that day he ignited an energy ball in his hand.

"Actually it's yours." A blast sent him staggering back a few steps and he turned angrily to see Piper stood a few feet away, her hands raised, ready to blow him up. He sighed overdramatically, "How many times do I have to tell you that your powers won't work on me. They can't hurt me."

"You're right," Piper agreed, "But this can."

Before Zoltar had a chance to reply, the blade of the athame appeared through the middle of his chest. He let out a gasp of pain and his eyes widened as the wound began to smoke. He looked up at Piper, "But… how did you…?"

Paige stepped out from behind him, "She didn't. I did." She smirked at his expression, "Don't tell me you forgot I was here? And here I thought you loved me!"

Piper walked over to stand next to her sister, "It's a little anticlimactic I'll admit but then that's all you deserve."

The blast from the explosion knocked them both to the floor. Paige got to her feet quickly and pulled Piper up. "How many times am I going to get knock on my ass today?"

A sob to the left of them made them both turn round. Piper closed her eyes, "Cole…"

Phoebe shook her head as tears made their way down her face, "He's not dead. He can't be."

Paige and Piper made their way over to Phoebe. Leo was already stood next to her. Piper knelt down next to Phoebe and wrapped her arms round her. Phoebe didn't move from the position she was in though. More tears broke free as she held onto Cole even tighter, "He's can't be dead. He promised he'd never leave me." She looked pleadingly at Piper, "He promised…"

"I don't think he had a choice, honey. If he could have stayed with you then he would have. You know that. You meant more to him that anything."

Paige looked hopelessly at Leo, "Can't you heal him?"

Leo shook his head, "I've already tried…"

"What if you and me heal him together? Like we did when we first met?"

"He's already gone, Paige, there's nothing we can do."

"No!" Phoebe snapped, "He's not gone! You can take him up to the Elders. They can heal him."

Leo sighed sadly, "It's too late Phoebe."

Almost as if to clarify what Leo was saying, Cole's body suddenly turned to ash and then disappeared. Phoebe let out a wail and leaned forward over where Cole had been lying just seconds before, sobbing freely now.

The others all knelt round her, offering silent comfort to their distraught sister.


	18. Prologue Slow Steps To Recovery

A/N:I know... I know... I have taken way too long to get this written and uploaded and I'm really, really sorry! Here it is though, the epilogue. It's been a long road but finaaly reached the end and I want to thank everyone for sticking with me. Enjoy!

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Epilogue - Slow Steps To Recovery

Paige sat alone in her bedroom staring out of the window at the rain making tracks down the glass. The house was quiet. Much the same as it had been when she'd first moved in but also much, much different. A sense of grieving hung over the household like a black cloud and there was no escaping from it.

It had been three days now since the battle in the underworld. Paige remembered back to when they had first orbed home. Phoebe had gone straight upstairs to her room, not uttering a word to anyone. Piper had hugged Paige and said that she was glad she was safe, before heading up the stairs after Phoebe to offer some much needed comfort.

Leo and Paige had stood awkwardly for a moment before Leo had announced that he should probably go and fill the Elders in on what had happened. After he'd left Paige had stood silently for a moment, a million different thoughts running through her mind. And then she'd headed up the stairs after her sisters.

A soft knock on the door brought Paige back to the present and she smiled as Piper poked her head around the door. Nothing was said as Piper made her way across the room to sit next to her on the bed. They sat in amicable silence for a few minutes. Paige tried to think of something to say. Anything. And that's when Piper reached out and took Paige's hand in her own.

Paige glanced at Piper in surprise. Piper smiled at her and returned her gaze to the window. Feeling touched by this small act of affection, Paige reached across with her other hand and placed it on top of Piper's. They sat like this in silence, each taking comfort in the others presence.

"Room for one more?"

The two sisters turned to see Phoebe stood in the doorway. Her eyes were red with dark circles under them and her hair was a mess but still; she looked better than she had in days.

Piper patted the space next to her and Phoebe walked over to them. She sat down on the bed on Piper's other side and rested her head on her shoulder.

"How are you holding up?" Paige asked quietly.

Phoebe thought for a moment. "Better than I was. I have my good moments and my bad moments. I still can't believe that he's gone." Her voice broke a little at the end and she wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

Piper wrapped her arm around Phoebe's shoulders and gave her a squeeze. "I know it's no consolation Phoebs, but he died to protect us. To protect you. I think… if he could have chosen a way to go then that would have been his choice."

Phoebe nodded sadly. They sat in silence for a few more minutes until Phoebe sat up properly and ran her hands over her face. She peered round Piper at Paige. "So Paige… Any word on your loft yet?"

Paige took her time answering, wondering how to say what she wanted to say. "Well, actually… I've decided to give the place up. I can't really afford it. Plus I think I want to stick around here, keep an eye on you two. Make sure you don't get into any trouble. If that's ok…?"

Phoebe nodded and smiled. The first smile she'd had in days. "I'd like that."

Piper didn't answer but she put her other arm around Paige's shoulders and gave her a squeeze too. It was worth more to Paige than a thousand words.

The smell of burning drifted into the room and Piper jumped to her feet, "The dinner!" As she hurried out of the room she paused at the doorway, "Oh, and seeing as you live here now Paige, You get the washing up." She smirked at her and left the room.

Paige smiled and shook her head. She glanced at Phoebe who was staring straight ahead of her looking lost. Edging closer, Paige reached out and held Phoebe's hand, "You ok?"

"No." Phoebe turned to look at her. "But I will be." She sighed and forced a smile. "So, you're going to be living here full time? Sure you can put up with the constant demon attacks?"

"It's worth it."

Phoebe smiled again and, leaning over, placed a kiss against Paige's hair before getting to her feet. "I'll see you downstairs sweetie."

Paige looked back out of the window. The rain had stopped and the clouds had parted a little letting a beam of sunlight break through. She smiled. They were going to be ok.

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed that guys. There are a few new stories in the works, one of which I've uploaded the Prologue for. It's called 'Freak' and if you could give it a read and let me know what you think I'd really appreciate it. Thanks again everyone *Mwah!*

CharmedOneForever :)


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